Iron Chef Symphonia: Aselia Cup
by OkonoMiyagi
Summary: Chairman Kaga creates a culinary tournament to promote peace between the two worlds through one of man's most primal instincts: the urge to eat. Minor spoilers if you haven't completed the game. COMPLETE!
1. Prologue: Kaga's Monologue

**Iron Chef Symphonia: Aselia Cup**

**Summary: Chairman Kaga creates a culinary tournament to promote peace between the two worlds through one of man's most primal instincts: the urge to eat. Minor spoilers if you haven't completed the game.**

**Author's Pre-Battle Notes: OkonoMiyagi here after a bit of a hiatus! Iron Chef Symphonia is back, and I've decided to go all-out with this one. Four battles in one story...here, of course, is your chairman with the pre-show. Remember that all characters are assumed to be speaking Japanese unless otherwise noted. And, of course:**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia, Iron Chef, or any of the characters involved.**

**Allez cuisine!**

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**Prologue**

**Kaga's Monologue**

_If memory serves me right, this year will mark the three-year anniversary of the unification of the two worlds._

_The unification efforts ended the mana struggle between the two worlds and ended the need for the sacrifice of a Chosen, thus bringing peace to this new one world called Aselia. The most recent former Chosen to undertake this arduous journey is this young lady: Colette Brunel._

_"It was a long journey. But I wouldn't have done it if I didn't love this world so much. I don't think I would have been able to do it without the help of my friends, either. But I'm very happy about the result."_

_After their efforts ended, I brought my Kitchen Stadium to Aselia in pursuit of my dream: to encounter new, original cuisines, which can be called true artistic creations. The urge to eat is one of our most primal—there is not a single creature in this world that does not share this urge._

_So, to commemorate this special anniversary, and to celebrate the achievements of Colette's group, I have decided to begin a special tournament to promote peace between the two worlds through good food. And this tournament shall be:_

_IRON CHEF SYMPHONIA: ASELIA CUP_

_I have found four chefs from the two worlds that will do justice to my intents in establishing this tournament. And I do believe that most citizens of Aselia will recognize their names—but we shall meet the contestants later. At stake: 250,000 gald, the Aselia Cup, and the honor of having one dish named Aselia's national dish._

_And, to further promote peace in this new world, I have decided to move my Kitchen Stadium outdoors by the coastline for this tournament, to let both chefs and spectators appreciate the natural wonders of this world._

_But it won't end with the tournament champion. I will have the winner challenge one of my Iron Chefs to determine the best chef in Aselia._

_Now, Iron Chef Symphonia fans! Never forget to keep peace through good food…and witness the greatest battles the world has seen in culinary history!_

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**How am I doing so far? I'll reveal the combatants in the next chapter, don't worry. Hint: they're all playable characters, and there are two Tethe'allans, two Sylvaranti. And one of them is not Genis, because I've already used him twice in these stories. Please R&R!**


	2. One: The Call to Battle

**Our story begins with the four chefs receiving their invitations to the Aselia Cup. Ryori no Tetsu-Shinfonia kono ato (Iron Chef Symphonia is coming up next).**

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**Chapter 1: The Call to Battle**

"Your mail, President Bryant," George called as he set the pile of envelopes down on a nearby chair.

"Thank you, George," Regal called as George slipped out and he got up to retrieve the pile. Most, he discovered, were the typical business statements from the Lezareno Company's different branches. These he ignored—the company was doing good business anyway, and he tossed those into his desk drawer to look at "later." Another came from the Symphonian Gourmet Academy, once again asking for money to sponsor the _Iron Chef Symphonia_. Regal was surprised at how quickly the show gained popularity, considering its rather bleak beginnings—the ratings report was not promising, and one critic even went so far as to say the show would be cancelled within the year. But the show was now going a year strong, and a ratings powerhouse to boot. Perhaps it had to do with Genis's recent installment as one of the show's regular Iron Chefs.

He thought once again to the Grand Hotel Altamira's restaurant, and how well it was doing ever since Genis joined the ranks of the army of chefs it employed. It became increasingly difficult to get a table there for regular folk ever since Genis became head chef, and he couldn't be any happier.

His own restaurant, _La Reina Alicia_, had also just opened last month to moderate success. It seemed, these days, that people were willing to do anything that had to do with a member of the World Regeneration group. And when it came to eating, such popular desires increased tenfold—they would pay ridiculous amounts of money to eat the same dishes the World Regeneration group ate while on their quest. The most recent statement that arrived in the mail showed that Regal had already come out ahead by a few hundred thousand in the restaurant's short life. He smiled as he filed the paper in its proper place in his desk drawer.

Shuffling through the stack of mail, he came across a package slip.

"Hm," he sighed, "and I never get packages. I wonder what this could be about…"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Whew…what a long day," Lloyd sighed as he and Colette walked through the front door of Colette's house.

"I never knew the restaurant was so popular!" Colette squeaked as she started for the stairs. "We've only been open for a month and we're into the millions already…"

Perhaps it was Lloyd's bold flavors in his dishes that kept guests flocking to _Anna_ every night. Or perhaps it was Colette's heavenly touch that attracted crowds to her savory, sweet dishes. Whatever the case may be, they were certainly doing well for a relatively inexperienced pair of restaurateurs. Rumors abounded that the Wonder Chef himself was a regular patron. Neither Lloyd nor Colette had actually seen him (and, for that matter, neither had anyone else), since they were busy perfecting their own recipes in the kitchen.

"Hey, Colette, have we checked the mail today?"

"I checked it back at the restaurant, but I don't remember what I did with the packages…"

"We had packages?"

"Uh, yeah—I think I kept them with the leftover ingredients," Colette called as she turned the shower on.

Lloyd's instincts guided him to the refrigerator. He couldn't help but laugh as he found the two packages next to the avocados they took back from the restaurant that day.

"You left them in the refrigerator, you klutz," he shouted at her.

There was no return address on either of the packages, but Lloyd was too busy opening the box to notice. He pulled out the curious-looking object and hit the play button.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

She had carried over her woodworking skills to the kitchen, creating things out of ordinary foods that were considered by some to be too pretty to eat. Apple cranes, carrot fishes, and pumpkin turtles that adorned the counter of her kitchen attested to her artistry. Her restaurant, _Francesca_, doubled as an edible art gallery.

Presea stood hunched over her cutting board, carving into the peel of an orange. Those that frequented her restaurant were always amazed by her intricacy in her handiwork, and this newest exhibition—"orange lanterns", she called them—was no different. She lined up the oranges side-by-side and smiled as her patrons "oohed" and "aahed" at her newest work of art.

_Ozette_, the oranges read in katakana.

"There's a package for you in the back," her sous-chef called from the kitchen. "Here, why don't you go take a look at it while I take over for you? It had 'important' stamped on it…"

"I will, thank you, Yuko."

Presea went to the back office and found the package resting on her desk. She took the strange object out of the box; it bore a strange emblem consisting of two birds holding a shield bearing a "K" on it. It was a hologram projector.

_Where have I seen that emblem before…?_

She pressed the play button, making an image of a man dressed in overly-ornate clothing appear before her eyes.

"Greetings, Miss Combatir. I am Takeshi Kaga, the Chairman of the Gourmet Academy."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Rest assured, Mr. Bryant, that this is not yet another plea for sponsorship of my show."

_Thank goodness for that,_ Regal thought as he sat in his office. _I just gave you a million the other month. Now what exactly do you want?_

"The world knows you have become a most powerful warrior over the course of your journey, but they do not know that you have recently become a chef. I have sent some of my agents to your restaurant, _La Reina Alicia_, to report on your progress in the culinary world. Every single one of them has come back with gleaming reviews."

Regal's eyes widened, bearing the look of a sudden realization.

_This has to be some sick joke._

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"I have heard many great things about your new restaurant, _Anna_, in Iselia. No doubt you are very pleased with your recent successes," Kaga continued in the darkened kitchen of Colette's house. Lloyd's mouth hung open as he took in the Chairman's words.

"My sources tell me your dishes are full of bold flavors, never shirking from taking risks in your flavors—a philosophy that would make Honorary Iron Chef Michiba very happy indeed."

"Lloyd," Colette called from upstairs, "who is that strange man talking downstairs? Is someone with you?"

There was no response from the red-clad swordsman; his eyes were glued to the image of the Chairman that gestured once again to speak.

"As you are probably aware of by now, this year marks the three-year anniversary of your successful journey—three years of peace as a result of the efforts of you and your companions."

_Well, I am now that you told me…_ Lloyd thought. _Has it really been that long?_

"To commemorate this special occasion, I am holding a special culinary tournament…"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"…and, with your permission, I would like to invite you to compete in it."

Presea sat in the closed back room, dumbstruck. _But I am not a chef of that caliber…why me? Why not Sheena, she got personal instruction from Iron Chef Michiba himself!_

"Allow me to explain," the Chairman continued, "If you choose to accept, you will be one of two Tethe'allan chefs to compete in this tournament, the Aselia Cup. You will compete against each other for the right to battle one of two chefs from Sylvarant for the coveted Aselia Cup. And should you win the tournament, you will receive 250,000 gald."

_A quarter of a million gald…Ozette still needs help, and that money could help us greatly…but what if I lose?_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Please reply back using the record button on this projector by the end of the week. Construction of the outdoor stadium is nearly finished, and we would like to hold the battle within the next three weeks. I look forward to hearing from you."

The Chairman's image disappeared as the projector clicked off, leaving Regal sitting in silence.

_I don't want to let my restaurant or myself down if I lose…most of all, I don't want to let you down, Alicia…_

He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes in meditation, thinking back to the restaurant's grand opening.

_"In the name of love through cuisine…I hereby declare _La Reina Alicia_ open!"_

Love through cuisine—it was one of life's simple pleasures, to share a meal with the ones you loved. That was Regal's dream, to provide a place for the people to spend time with the ones they loved through a universal pleasure.

_It seems Chairman Kaga aims to do the same thing I wanted to, only with this tournament of his…_

Alicia would always flash him that gorgeous smile of hers whenever she tasted his cooking. If there was one thing he missed most about his love, it was her smile—he knew even something as simple as chopped fruit brought that smile to her face, because she knew his cuisine and his heart were one and the same. He looked to the heavens, hoping to get a glimpse of that smile one more time.

He rehearsed his reply several times before pressing the record button.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Presea emerged from the back room and rejoined Yuko at the counter, visibly shaken.

_Did I make the right choice? It's an obvious pressure to my coworkers here at the restaurant…_

"What was that about, Presea?"

"Ah…" Presea croaked, her voice trembling. "I think I might need your help in a few weeks."

"Oh, what for?"

"Well, it's just…" Presea lowered her voice into a whisper and leaned into Yuko's ear.

"I've just accepted to compete on the _Iron Chef Symphonia._"

"You WHAT?!" Yuko screamed. "That…that's incredible! I'm so happy for you!"

"Yes, but this is the biggest tournament they've ever had. Our very reputation is at stake."

Yuko chuckled. "Presea, why do you have to take everything so seriously? Lighten up, have fun, make good food! That's what he's really trying to get you to do. I'm glad you're doing the tournament! Who cares if you lose, just have fun!"

Presea just looked at her sous-chef, confused.

"Fun…?"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Yeah, let's do it, Lloyd! It'll show us just how far we've come as chefs!"

_But I could never forgive myself if I defeated you, Colette…I've already hurt you once, and I don't ever want to hurt you again…_

"What's wrong, Lloyd?"

"Nothing, it's just…" Lloyd muttered to himself. "…we have to battle against each other."

"What's wrong with that?" Colette asked innocently.

"Well, what if you lose? I don't want to—"

"It's not about winning or losing, Lloyd," Colette interrupted, "Besides, I think it's just an honor to be selected to compete! And I would feel much more comfortable battling you, Lloyd, simply because…because…well, I feel inspired whenever you're in the kitchen near me."

"But we're not going to be on the same side," Lloyd whined.

"But didn't you hear what Kaga-san said? This isn't about winning or losing, it's about keeping peace in the world through things people identify with most! I don't care whether I win or lose, I want to do whatever I can to keep peace in this world we worked so hard to save."

Lloyd chuckled—this was obviously one battle that he couldn't win. "Colette," he choked, "you haven't changed a bit."

He pressed the record button with determination.

"In the name of all those we lost to save this world, I, Lloyd Irving—"

"—and I, Colette Brunel—"

"—accept your invitation with honor!"


	3. Two: Extending the Invitation

**So that's half of the group. But what are the other four group members up to? We find out in this second chapter, which is probably rated T for Zelos being…well, the polar opposite of what we associate him with being. Enjoy.**

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**Chapter 2: Extending the Invitation**

"Hey, Raine, you hungry?"

The professor looked up from her desk in their apartment in Altamira, where the Sage siblings were living after Genis became head chef at the Grand Hotel's restaurant. Raine removed her glasses and sighed.

"Well, every scholar worth her salt has to eat sometime, I suppose. Did you have anything in mind?"

"We haven't seen Lloyd and Colette in a while, and I hear they have a new restaurant back in Iselia. Why don't we go pay them a visit?"

"That…" Raine paused. "That sounds like a great idea, Genis—I haven't had their cooking in quite some time. Grab the Rheairds and let's go—you have money, right? I need to wait on my next paycheck…"

"Yeah, I still have some of my Iron Chef money. C'mon, let's go!"

_And thank goodness we'll taste Lloyd and Colette's cooking instead of yours…_ Genis thought.

"How long do you think it's been since we saw them last?" Raine asked.

"I only remember I saw them at my battle against Iron Chef Michiba, and that was about five months ago…did we see them after that?"

"Not that I can recall, no. Let's just say it's been a long time. I wonder what new recipes they've come up with…"

Raine recalled Lloyd's cooking over the long journey. Compared to Genis, his cooking was a little rough around the edges—she found the occasional egg shell fragment in her omelet, or was served the more-frequent overcooked fish. Everyone groaned whenever he whipped up Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise—Lloyd would throw together whatever they had at the time, and its level of success with the party was highly variable.

Colette, however, was another story. Her clumsiness sometimes led to absolute disaster in the kitchen, but she, unlike Lloyd, pleased the group with her meals more consistently. Raine smiled to herself, thinking of Colette's angelic touch in all of her dishes—it brought a figment of home to the table, even when they were another world away.

"Hey sis, I'll bet you ten gald Lloyd put Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise on the menu…"

"No way, that? I hated it when he made that, and I don't think he'd be crazy enough to serve that back home. You're on."

"Well, it sure beat your cooking most of the time…"

"I DON'T APPRECIATE THAT, YOU LITTLE…!"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Ozette had been getting help with their rebuilding efforts from all over the place, especially after the rest of the world had received word that one of the heroes of Regeneration, Presea Combatir, was originally from there. The rebuilding efforts had gone much more smoothly now that Mizuho had offered to help them out, no doubt because of someone else from the Regeneration efforts.

Presea was eternally grateful for the help, as it kept business at her restaurant coming. It seemed there was never a quiet moment in that kitchen, but she would argue that it never seemed like work—it combined her passion, carving and artwork, with her newfound culinary skills.

It had been a month since Mizuho began helping Ozette, and Presea was in the middle of another heavy business day at _Francesca_—she was at her usual place at the "carving counter," as she called the sushi bar-esque central area, making short work of a bright red apple she got her hands on. As she worked, a young woman in a rather revealing purple kimono-like outfit walked into the door.

_Whoa…it's like a sculpture gallery in here…_

"Table for one?" the hostess asked her.

"Ah, no thanks, I'll just be sitting at the bar here," she replied as she made her way to an open seat. She ordered a green tea as she watched Presea, who so far had not looked up to acknowledge her, make delicate incisions into a section of the apple. She placed the carved section onto another rounded section of apple.

_Now if I did everything right, _Presea thought, _when I peel this back, this should form the tail…_

She pulled back the tail, revealing the many triangular cuts she made in the flesh of the apple.

"Wow," Sheena gasped under her breath, not wanting to disturb Presea's concentration. Ninja were good at that, though. They could say anything they wanted under their breath and not be heard for miles—Sheena knew that all too well.

But then the little carver looked up at her.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

He needed out.

It wasn't just the endless throngs of girls chasing him day after day, but seeing the same things in Meltokio day after day. And it reminded him of too much—too much of the pain that killed him from the inside. The journey was over; why should he still have to suffer? Why should anyone have to suffer after what they did for the world?

Zelos didn't feel hungry, but he wasn't full either. He wished Seles was with him—at least then he'd have an excuse to get something to eat. She was being mysterious, earlier in the day, when he asked her to come with him to a haberdashery—he wanted to get her a new hat, but she claimed she had "an important meeting" to attend. Pressed for further details, she dodged the questions.

He hopped on the Rheaird and took off for Altamira—the drinks were harder and knocked him out faster there. He thought back to Lloyd's advice from the journey—that when you're depressed, it's best to spend time with the ones you love.

_And when the ones you love have other things to do, you go it alone and drink away your troubles,_ he sardonically added.

He walked around Altamira, looking around for a place that looked like it had potables potent enough for him. There was nothing strong enough in the hotel, he remembered, thinking back to that night the group spent in Altamira during the journey. He had tried to get Sheena drunk by ordering the hardest stuff they had, but they burned through a bottle of it (mostly drunk by him) without any effect at all. Of course, at the end of the night, he found himself alone in his room and with a sharp pain in his left cheek.

The light from a bright blue neon sign interrupted his thoughts.

La Reina Alicia, Zelos read. _Is this place new? I don't ever remember being here before…_

Out of curiosity, he strolled inside—there was already a long line, but given his status, he should have no problem finding a table.

"Ah, Chosen One!" the hostess lit up. "Please, right this way, we have a special table for the Heroes of Regeneration right over here. The head chef requests that he be able to see who exactly he's serving so he knows how to cater to their favorites," she went on, pulling him past the long line of disgruntled customers.

Zelos didn't listen—he just absentmindedly followed her to a special table right in front of the kitchen. He nodded to the hostess as she handed him a menu, placed it on the table without much care.

"Could I see the drink menu?"

"It's the last page."

He furiously scanned the drink menu for anything that looked remotely strong, and finally settled on a small bottle of Mizuhoan sake before putting down the menu. Food could wait, he reasoned—in fact, he didn't feel like eating at all. He needed the drink to warm his aching soul, to knock him out flat.

"Something smells good," he muttered to himself as he averted his gaze to the kitchen. The chef was veiled in smoke as he flipped the mixture in his frying pan—Zelos couldn't quite make out what it was. The smoke began to clear as the chef took the mixture off the fire and plated it behind him, but he nearly dropped the pan in surprise as he turned around. Zelos dropped his jaw in surprise.

"R-Regal?!"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"You were right, Genis, there's the Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise on the menu…" Raine sighed, fishing into her wallet for the ten gald as Genis laughed.

"Easiest ten gald I ever made, sis," he said, pocketing the money. "Do you know what you're having?"

"This one here, lemon-glazed tenderloin. Think this was Lloyd's creation a long time ago, and I haven't had it in a while. What about you?"

"I don't know yet…actually, this shrimp risotto sounds pretty good. I'm going to try that."

_Must be Colette's…I seem to recall she loved shrimp._

"Are we ready to order?" a blonde-haired young lady in a chef's outfit asked them sweetly.

The Sage siblings looked up, surprised at who they saw—they leapt out of their seats to embrace the former Chosen.

_"Colette!"_

"Oh my goodness, you certainly have grown in the last five or six months!" Raine exclaimed. "And nice restaurant! I'm certainly glad to see Iselia doing so well again."

"Thanks, Professor! Genis, it's so good to see you again! What are we having tonight?"

"I'm having the lemon-glazed tenderloin, please Colette," replied Raine.

"And the shrimp risotto for me," Genis added.

"Oh, you'll love that one, Genis," Colette replied. "It's one of my favorites. Well, before I put that in, I've got something to tell you…"

_Lloyd proposed to you?!_ Genis thought, smirking at the far-fetched idea—they both wouldn't be able to tell. "What's that?" he said instead.

"Lloyd and I are going to be competing on _Iron Chef Symphonia_!"

Raine gasped. "That's…that's great, Colette! Congratulations! When's the battle?"

"Ah, I think three weeks from now. Let me go put these in and I'll come back to talk with you some more, OK? Oh, I've got to tell Lloyd you two are here…"

The blonde-haired chosen stole away to the kitchen gleefully, leaving Genis and Raine giggling at the table.

"And it's amazing she didn't trip on her way over there…" Raine said through laughs.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"So who are you battling?" Sheena asked eagerly, excited to see Presea cook one more time.

"I do not know," Presea responded. "All I know is that I am one of two Tethe'allan chefs competing, and there are also two Sylvaranti chefs in this tournament. I am just honored to be selected as a competitor in it."

Sheena smiled back. "I'll say—you'll definitely earn some points with all these carvings! When did you learn to do all this?"

"It's not that different from working with wood, really," Presea responded, reaching for a fish she carved out of a carrot and a similar-looking fish carved out of wood. "Of course, I have to come to terms with the fact that the food carvings are considerably less permanent than the wood carvings…" she sighed, watching a customer take the wing of the apple crane she carved and eat it.

"Can you believe it's been three years since that long journey?" Sheena asked to break the silence.

"Has it really?" Presea replied in disbelief as she chopped into a block of yellowtail fillet. "The world has come a long way since then, hasn't it?"

"It sure has, but there is still work to be done…" Sheena sighed. "And since there's a lot of work left, there's bound to be some tension between races which will lead to war if we're not careful. Maybe that's Chairman Kaga's reasoning behind holding this tournament?"

"I seem to remember him saying something about that in that message I was sent…it sounds like a good idea to me, identifying with a common interest of all living things. Doesn't it make sense to you?"

"Sure, I mean, everyone's gotta eat…"

"Including you, I'm sure. What can I get for you?"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"No kidding, Regal? This is YOUR restaurant?"

"Yes, I opened it about a month ago. You caught me at the right time, though—I'm not here all the time, because I'm still full-time President of Lezareno. They still call me the head chef, though."

"And you're not kidding? You're going to be on Iron Chef Symphonia?"

"Yes, I suppose that is the case. I think they could have picked someone better than me, but if I am called, I shall compete…"

"Oh, Regal, humble as always…" Zelos slurred—the sake was finally beginning to affect him. "Say, when's the battle again?"

"Three weeks from today. I trust you'll be there—less inebriated than you are now, I hope?"

"You betcha!" Zelos flashed a dumb grin as the effects of the sake began to overtake him. "And I wonder how many of our old friends are gonna be there too…"

"Oh, they'll have their own way of knowing, I'm sure."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"You sure you still want to do this, Lloyd? I mean, you and Colette are pretty much best friends, and you have to battle each other? Wouldn't that just devastate one of you?" Genis asked as he savored the risotto. "And this is delicious, by the way…"

"Are you kidding me? Winning or losing doesn't matter to us," Lloyd chuckled in disbelief. "Chairman Kaga specifically told us that he's holding this tournament to keep peace in this world, and we want to maintain what we've worked so hard to establish!"

_Typical Lloyd…_ Raine thought as she munched on the tenderloin.

"The only fighting that should happen in this world is in Kitchen Stadium, and over all the dishes that come out of it," Colette added, eliciting a laugh from the Sage siblings.

"Well, thanks for the great meal, you two. We'll see you in three weeks at the battle?"

"Definitely. Hope to see you there."

Lloyd turned to Colette. "You sure you still want to battle me?"

Colette chuckled. "Why do you worry so much about that? I'm not going to hold back, and neither should you…"

Lloyd's jaw went slack, not knowing what to say next until he saw Colette's smile turn into a sad frown. She put her fists up in protest.

"Now don't you start apologizing to me…" Lloyd retorted. "OK, how about this—fifty gald I win."

"But Lloyd, I don't want you to lose your money…"

"Ohhhh, there you go again!"

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**All kidding aside, this was a tough chapter to write. But rest assured, the tournament begins in the next chapter!**


	4. Three: The Opening Ceremony

**The tournament begins in this chapter with, in true-to-form Iron Chef fashion, a rather ritualistic opening ceremony. Ryori no Tetsu-Shinfonia kono ato.**

**Author's Note: I'm going to try something new beginning with this chapter. ==THIS== indicates the title of a music cue that will play during the tournament. Most of these can be searched for on YouTube fairly easily, but others may be more difficult to find. If you're a fan of the original "Iron Chef", though, you might know most of them already.**

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**Chapter 3: The Opening Ceremony**

Lloyd and Colette arrived at the large outdoor Kitchen Stadium clad in their chef's uniforms from _Anna_, bearing ear-to-ear grins on their faces that showed their determination to compete. They were shown to their dressing rooms, their own little meditative spaces before the battle. Lloyd made for the doorknob before Colette grabbed his shoulder.

"Lloyd…I don't want to be alone before this battle. Do you want to come in with me?"

Lloyd blinked. "Uh…sure, let me see if there's anything important in my dressing room, and if there is, I'll bring it over." He dove into the dressing room and clicked on the light. There was a small table and some cushions around it. Resting on the table was a curious-looking piece of parchment, which he scooped up, and a commemorative Aselia Cup patch, which he put in his pocket before heading back over to Colette's dressing room.

"It's just like our journey, the two of us together before a major battle," Lloyd remarked.

"You're right," Colette replied, "you and I would always help each other out before a battle…"

"But this time, we're battling against each other."

Silence hung over the two teens as they cast their glances askance. Then Colette grabbed Lloyd's shoulder.

"Haven't we been over this before? We're cooking _together_, to keep peace in this world! I don't want you to worry about hurting my feelings because you beat me. I know it'll be for a good cause, regardless of who wins."

Lloyd sighed—this was certainly one battle he wasn't going to win. He chuckled as he sucker-punched Colette, as if to say, "OK, yeah, I get it. We've been over this a thousand times, I know."

"I wonder who else from our group is coming to the battle…I honestly haven't seen many of our friends since Genis battled Iron Chef Michiba last," Colette mused.

"Oh, Genis is probably heartbroken over not seeing Presea for a while," Lloyd joked. They both laughed as a producer knocked on the door.

"Come in," Lloyd called.

"Miss Brunel—oh! And Mr. Irving, we were wondering where you were," the producer, Mr. Matsuo, called. "We have a match-up tape for you—Kaga-san will go over this during the show, but we want to give this to you now so there will be no surprises before the battle. Well, except the theme ingredient, of course. We'll call you to your places in about 20 minutes."

"Thank you, Matsuo-san," Lloyd called, receiving the tape. "Well Colette, I guess all mysteries about our competition will be gone once we watch the tape, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so, let's watch it!"

Lloyd put the tape in the player and pressed play.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Excuse me miss, but only the four competitors are allowed beyond this point—"

"I am one of the competitors," Presea replied in her monotone voice.

"You certainly don't look like one of them…" the producer trailed off, eyeing Presea warily.

_I do not understand why she does not recognize I am one of the four competing today…_ she thought. "Do you remember, by chance, any of the heroes of regeneration having pink hair?" she asked the producer.

"Pink hair…pink hair…wait, she carried an axe around, didn't she? And she's 31 but she's trapped in the body of a 12-year-old?"

Presea nodded.

"You're trying to tell me that you're her? _You're _Presea Combatir?"

"The one and the same. Now if you'll excuse me, I believe we are a little short on time before the battle, and I need my time to prepare—" She began walking away from the producer in the direction of the dressing rooms when she bumped into a rather large man. She blinked as she saw the color of the man's hair—blue.

"Regal?! What—you—you are my opposition?"

The older man chuckled and grinned as he embraced the little woodcutter. "It would appear to be so…since when did you have your own restaurant?"

"I opened it about two months ago in Ozette as it's being rebuilt—business has been crazy ever since Mizuho started helping out with the reconstruction. I think I'm understaffed in the kitchen…maybe Sheena can coax Iron Chef…Michiba? Was that his name?" She paused as Regal nodded. "Maybe she can talk him into sending some of his trainees over to my place, _Francesca_—"

"Isn't that the name of your weapon?" Regal asked.

"You have a very good memory, Regal," Presea replied, wide-eyed.

"Sorry to interrupt, both of you, but I must present this to you. This is the tape that outlines the match-ups—Kaga-san will go over this during the tournament, but we wanted you to know ahead of time so that the only secret is the theme ingredient," Mr. Matsuo interrupted, handing Regal a tape.

"Thank you, Matsuo-san, we'll watch this right away. You're welcome to come into my dressing room to watch, Presea."

Presea thanked him as she hurried off to her own dressing room to drop off her equipment, then quickly scurried to Regal's without wasting any time.

"Come in," he called.

Presea creaked the door open and stepped inside, quizzically looking at Regal as he read a letter.

"Listen to this," Regal beckoned as he read the letter aloud.

_To all combatants in the Aselia Cup:_

_ First of all, thank you for taking the time to indulge me in pursuit of my dreams. You represent the very best in culinary talent Aselia has to offer, and I would expect nothing less from the competitors in this special tournament._

_ Allow me to inform you of our tasting panel for the tournament. The following is a list of all the judges for the tournament—each battle will have five judges drawn from this list judge your creations:_

Regal scanned the list—all seven of the Iron Chefs were there, along with Yuan, Seles, Tokunaga, Chocolat, Dorr, Phaidra, Pietro, and Chief Igaguri. What surprised them most, however, were the five names that followed.

"You've got to be kidding me…" Regal cursed under his breath as he read the five remaining names.

_FUJIBAYASHI, Sheena. Successor of Mizuho._

_ SAGE, Raine. Chair of Ancient History at Sybak Academy._

_ SAGE, Genis. Iron Chef Sylvaranti._

_ WILDER, Zelos. Former Chosen of Tethe'alla._

_ AURION, Kratos. Grand Seraph of Derris-Kharlan._

"They can't expect this to be a fair evaluation if THEY'RE judging," Presea said, lifting her gaze from the letter.

"I'm sure they've been briefed on the fair judging policy that I've laid forth—if the panelist knows both parties equally well, they are to put aside any personal preference and judge according to the food on the table only. It's a largely honor-based policy, I know, but I trust the five of them enough to uphold it."

"Except Zelos, you mean? Knowing him, he'll probably vote for me and the female Sylvarant chef regardless…" Presea sighed. "What's the rest of the letter say?"

Regal cleared his throat and finished reading.

_Do not forget: should you win the tournament, you still have to fight one more battle against the Iron Chef of your choice. You will, no doubt, be tired after two consecutive battles. But only the strong, the intuitive, and the creative survive in my Kitchen Stadium. And knowing who I have selected for this tournament, I am quite certain I have nothing to worry about._

_ Best of luck,_

_ Takeshi Kaga, Chairman of the Gourmet Academy_

"Well then, let's see who exactly we're up against, shall we?" Regal said as he got up to put the tape into the player.

Presea felt her heart leap as the tape began playing.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

_ASELIA CUP MATCH-UP ANNOUNCEMENT_

_IRON CHEF SYMPHONIA_

**==CHARGING FORT WAGNER==**

_ I will now announce the two who will do battle in the first battle, the Tethe'alla Semifinal._

_ He once vowed that he would never do battle with his hands ever again, but now uses them in pursuit of new culinary ideas. The President of the Lezareno company and owner/chef of _La Reina Alicia _in Altamira: Regal Bryant._

_ Going against him is an evangelist of artistic culinary figurines, the vanguard of Ozette tradition—owner and head chef of _Francesca_ in Ozette: Presea Combatir._

_ The second battle is the Sylvarant Semifinal, and will be fought by…_

_ A young man who has devoted his life to keeping peace in this world and now does so through his dwarven culinary training—co-owner/chef of _Anna_ in Iselia, Lloyd Irving._

_ Going against him is the former Sylvarant Chosen who brings an angelic touch of homely comfort—co-owner/chef of _Anna_ in Iselia, Colette Brunel._

**==LAST BATTLE: DECISION==**

_ The chef who emerges on top will be considered the best chef in all of Aselia, and will have one of their dishes named the Aselia Dish—the world's national dish._

_ But it won't end there—the winner will challenge one of my Iron Chefs in a final exhibition match. Should he or she win, I will graciously induct them as a guest Iron Chef, alongside the ranks of their friend Genis Sage._

**==SHOW ME YOUR FIRETRUCK==**

_ So now, you four chefs! Use all your techniques and resources and show us how you successfully regenerated the world!_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

The sun cast its bright rays over the outdoor Kitchen Stadium, built on the coastlines near the Grand Tethe'alla Bridge. Kaga smiled from his backstage position as he gazed into the river—the sun was reflecting off the surface of the water.

_Yes…this is a beautiful world, isn't it…?_

A light breeze picked up, and the Chairman sighed—it was a welcome diversion from the otherwise-hot weather. A producer held up his finger, signaling "one minute"—Kaga draped the hood of his dress kimono over his head and boarded the platform.

_Come, now, Aselia…let the games begin!_

(Author's Note: If this were an actual broadcast of Iron Chef, the program would begin here.)

**==ENGLISH GCN VER. INTRO==**

"Three years ago, this world, Aselia, was reborn," Fukui, the announcer, narrated. "Nine people joined forces and successfully merged the two worlds, Sylvarant and Tethe'alla, together in a harmonious co-existent state. The world knows these nine as the Heroes of Regeneration, and we have them to thank for this new one world. This is the world that we live in now—where there are no wars, and the only battles take place here in the Gourmet Academy's Kitchen Stadium.

"This beautiful outdoor stadium has been built to commemorate the third anniversary of their successful journey with the Aselia Cup Tournament. The Grand Tethe'alla Bridge overlooks the stadium, sending the message that cuisine is the one link that brings every living being together. And the man who is promoting that message is finally here—I give you our Chairman!"

A large, carriage-like platform began to ascend into view behind the ingredient stand. The crowd roared as a hooded figure, sporting a colorful dress kimono, emerged from the platform and removed his hood with a flourish, revealing a smile on his face. The music cut off as he began to speak.

"If memory serves me right, this is the third anniversary of the regeneration of the world. Peace has returned to this one world, Aselia, and I will dedicate my life to keep the peace through my own dreams—the pursuit of new, original cuisines."

Applause resonated throughout the stadium.

"It is my hope that the Kitchen Stadium will be the only place where two parties clash in battle, and even so, it is my hope that these battles will promote spirited competition that unite people through a common, everyday interest: the urge to eat."

The crowd roared, seemingly knowing who they would see next.

"Let me now call forth all of my culinary masters; these are the vanguards of this stadium, the ones who, I hope, spread my message as well. Now! Come to life in this new one world! IRON CHEFS!"

**==SHOW ME YOUR FIRETRUCK==**

"And making their entrance into Kitchen Stadium are the Gourmet Academy's Iron Chefs, the invincible men of culinary skills!" Fukui announced.

The jumbotron behind Kaga showed a camera panning behind where he stood, revealing a long bridge with seven men standing on the end of it. This was the traditional Iron Chef March; as the music started, a man in red holding a pear began to stroll down the bridge.

"He's the first man to fuse Japanese techniques with French cuisines, Iron Chef French Hiroyuki Sakai!"

Sakai emerged from the curtain under the main dais where Kaga stood and waved with his free hand, eliciting cheers from the crowd. This was the cue for the man in silver to begin his walk down the bridge.

"Innovative, creative, and artistic—he spearheads the Neo-Japanese movement, Iron Chef Japanese Masaharu Morimoto!"

"The Iron Chef with the longest career, the Szechuan Sage, Iron Chef Chinese Chen Kenichi!"

Chen drew the biggest cheers so far as he emerged from the curtain; as the Iron Chef Symphonia gained popularity, he came to be loved by all of Symphonia due to his lovable mannerisms and his erratic behavior in the kitchen. The man in yellow waved to the packed Kitchen Stadium.

"Youth on his side, he's the Italian cuisine genius, the Prince of Pasta, Iron Chef Italian Masahiko Kobe!"

The young man sporting the colors of the Italian flag bowed as he entered the Stadium.

"The sauce specialist, he fought the very first Iron Chef battle back in Japan, Honorary Iron Chef French, Yutaka Ishinabe!"

"The guardian of traditional Japanese cuisine, Honorary Iron Chef Japanese II, Komei Nakamura!"

"And finally, the God of Japanese cuisine, he leads a new generation of chefs in Aselia, Honorary Iron Chef Japanese I, Rokusaburo Michiba!"

The old man in blue drew a standing ovation from the crowd as he strode into the Stadium—he had become a legend in Aselia after defeating Genis Sage several months prior, and he was already respected as professor of Mizuho's culinary academy. He paused in front of the curtain and waved with both hands as the crowd roared.

"What a grand opening, all seven of the Iron Chefs in attendance for this historic tournament!"

The attention turned back to Chairman Kaga as he grabbed a yellow bell pepper from a bowl sitting on the ingredient stand and held it up in triumph.

"Iron Chef Symphonia! The Aselia Cup! Let it begin!" he cried as he chomped down on the pepper and smiled. The crowd roared (even though Colette was watching from backstage and turned green at watching Kaga bite into the pepper).

"Oh boy…it's nearly time!" Lloyd shouted over the din of the crowd from backstage. He quickly fidgeted until he found a comfortable pose onto the elevator platform. Colette giggled.

"Make up your mind already, Lloyd!" Colette shouted.

"Why, do you have one all made up?"

"Well, no…"

"Now, I summon…" they heard from above, "…the four great chefs of Aselia!"

**==SOSHITE BOKU NI DEKIRU KOTO (HEROIC)==**

The elevator platform Lloyd and the others were standing on began to rise. Lloyd frantically snapped into a lame pose (by his terms, nothing more than him just standing there with his hands on his hips) before his head poked out of the dais. Over the music, the four of them could hear applause from the crowd that rivaled the ovation the Iron Chefs received.

"Making their ascent into Kitchen Stadium come the four great chefs of Aselia, who come from all corners of the world!" Fukui boomed.

"He's Altamira's presidential culinary master, Regal Bryant!"

Regal did his signature kick and held his position until Fukui resumed his narration.

"Ozette's artistic carving genius, from the up-and-coming restaurant _Francesca_, Presea Combatir!"

No emotion crossed the little woodcutter's face.

"Sylvarant's former Chosen who brings heavenly flavors to the table, Colette Brunel!"

The former Chosen waved with both hands, trying very hard not to fall off the dais.

"And from Iselia, the leader of the World Regeneration Group, Lloyd Irving!"

He flashed a dumb grin as he scratched the back of his head and waved.

_Is that Genis who has his face in his palm?_ he thought, looking into the crowd.

"From among these four, tonight, we will decide the best chef in all of Aselia!"

The four chefs made their way down from the dais (Regal and Presea went behind the curtain the Iron Chefs marched in from), and the attention turned back to Kaga.

"In this first semifinal, we have the two chefs from Tethe'alla competing against each other. First, from Altamira's _La Reina Alicia_, Regal Bryant!"

**==BURN IT ALL==**

"And entering the Stadium is the towering, 6-foot-2, muscular Regal Bryant, whose assistants appear to be keeping their distance away from him until victory is secured. His noble flavors will keep your palate begging for more!"

The applause and music quieted as Kaga boomed forth once more:

"And second, from Ozette's _Francesca_, Presea Combatir!"

**==WALKING ON TETHE'ALLA==**

"All right, and making her entrance is Ozette's resident axe-wielding artist, Presea Combatir, who has been known to paint a picture before her customers' eyes in her restaurant—we'll see what scenery she'll come up with here in Kitchen Stadium!"

She shook Regal's hand before putting on her apron on her side of the kitchen. All eyes were now on Kaga, as there was only one thing left to do before the opening battle.

"For this first battle, I thought long and hard about what ingredient to give the two Tethe'allan chefs. This tournament is all about broadening our horizons about food and the way we eat—so, naturally, I picked something that neither of you have ever used before."

Both Presea and Regal raised their eyebrows.

"It was flown in from my old headquarters in Japan just this morning—it's just now in season from there. OK, let's announce it. The theme for the Tethe'alla Semifinal…is this!"

Kaga ripped the red tablecloth off the ingredient stand, and a giant tank began to rise in the midst of the cloud of dry ice. The two chefs both squinted as they could make out something—alive—with a long body squirming around in the tank.

_Danger…_ Presea muttered.

_…_ was all Regal could muster.

"The theme for the Tethe'alla Semifinal is…"

* * *

**...going to be revealed in the next chapter! You'll have to wait for a while to find out what the theme ingredient is…this one will be a goody, watching Regal and Presea handling live ingredients. (This narrows down the options, and there's another clue in there somewhere…)**

**R&R please!**


	5. Four: O Unagi Confront

**The Tethe'alla Semifinal kicks off the Aselia Cup Tournament. What theme do Regal and Presea get, but more importantly, whose cuisine reigns supreme? Kyo no tema wa…kore desu!**

**

* * *

  
**

**Chapter 4: O-Unagi Confront**

"The theme for the Tethe'alla Semifinal…is this!" Kaga bellowed as he ripped the red tablecloth off the ingredient stand. A large tank emerged in the midst of the cloud of dry ice, drawing no emotion from either chef. Within their minds, however, they were both panicking. The tank on the ingredient stand meant they had to deal with a live ingredient, and both Regal and Presea were used to having their protein ingredients arrive at their kitchens pre-killed before they handled them.

"The theme for the Tethe'alla Semifinal is…GIANT EEL!"

"How am I going to grab those?" Presea muttered. Ohta appeared behind her and asked her how she would approach today's theme ingredient just as she turned to Yuko and her other sous-chef, Ralph.

"Do not bother us," she said, quickly dismissing Ohta.

_Do I even remember how to fillet an eel? _Regal thought. _I haven't even touched these in a long time…_ He turned to discuss his strategy with his assistants just as Ohta stuck a microphone in his face to ask him how he'd tackle the ingredient, to which he said simply, "I do not know."

**==YOU GO, WE GO==**

}K{

テセアラ ジュンケッショウセン

リーガル・ブライアン VS プレセア・コンバティール

O-UNAGI CONFRONT

"At last, this historic Aselia Cup Tournament begins with the first battle, the Tethe'alla Semifinal," Fukui announced to an anxious, crowded audience. More than five thousand spectators from all over the world had come to watch the Heroes of Regeneration battle in Kitchen Stadium. "President and Chef Regal Bryant, showing a side of him many people don't really know about, taking on Chef Presea Combatir, the evangelist of Ozette's rebirth. Both chefs deal with an ingredient they haven't worked with much, giant eel, let's see how they handle it! We are set, let's get it on!"

"ALLEZ CUISINE!" Kaga boomed forth, smirking. The gong crashed, eliciting wild cheers from the audience as Regal and Presea each grabbed a net and a basket and ran up to the ingredient stand.

"Bang a gong, the Aselia Cup Tournament is on, finally," Fukui announced as the crowd applauded, "and the two chefs now make their way up to the ingredient stand to get their paws on today's theme ingredient, giant eel, and I've gotta say, Doc? These eels are huge!"

"Yeah, we've got 30 of them in the tank today, and they're about two times longer and one-and-a-half times heavier than regular eels," Hattori, the culinary expert, replied.

"Incredible! And look up there, it appears they're having some trouble fishing them out of there…"

Regal dug his net deeper into the tank and tried to pull out some of the eels, but as he pulled up the eels slopped over the side of his net and back into the tank, splashing violently. He finally managed to capture seven of the eels in the net (after a couple of them attempted to stage a jailbreak on the floor) and hurried back to his side of the stadium. Presea was faring worse, as she couldn't sink her net deep enough to scoop the theme ingredient out. Impatient, she slammed the net onto the ingredient stand and climbed up onto the table, ultimately deciding to grab them out of the tank by hand. Kaga, who hadn't yet left his position, struggled to hold back a laugh.

"Chef Combatir, obviously fed up with her lack of success at net fishing, taking matters into her own hands, literally…"

"Yeah, I don't think I've ever seen anyone actually physically climb onto the table to get their ingredient," Hattori remarked.

"But it's working," Fukui added, "she's got her fill of eels and now, down she comes from the table and here she comes back to the kitchen—"

"Fukui-san!"

"From the floor, Shinichiro Ohta, go!"

"Right after the theme ingredient was revealed, I asked Chef Bryant what he plans to do with an ingredient that he's hardly worked with before, and he just looked the other way and said—" here Ohta mimicked Regal's deep voice— "'I do not know'—he seems a little stressed out."

"Well, as we heard from the Chairman, eel is not a common ingredient here in Tethe'alla, so we'll see what they can do here—"

"And Fukui-san?"

"Take it!"

"I posed the same question to Chef Combatir on the other side and she didn't even look at me—she just shooed me away when she went to go talk to her assistants and told me, 'Do not bother us'—it was a little scary, she sounded a bit like a robot."

"Huh-kay, Chef Combatir not wanting to give anything away, ignoring anybody except her assistants if she has to—gotta say, I'm not quite used to that level of hostility here in Kitchen Stadium. And speaking of Chef Combatir, she's dropping the eels into…looks like cold water from here…"

"Fukui-san? This is dry ice," Ohta reported.

"Ah, OK, I think she's doing this to put the eels to sleep."

"And the reason?"

"Well, let's just say you don't want a squirming eel on the cutting board when you're cutting it open. See, look, Chef Bryant's doing it too."

"Oh, sure enough," Fukui added. "Whoa, there's one that's getting away, making a break for the river…it won't make it far, though, Chef Bryant's got his hands back on that one and into the dry ice it goes. And now, let's meet our guests for today's Tethe'alla Semifinal: first, Aselia's master summoner and successor to Mizuho, Sheena Fujibayashi."

Sheena bowed from her seat. "Hi, it's a pleasure."

"Miss Sheena, I hear you're one of Iron Chef Michiba's apprentices!"

"Yes, actually," Sheena said, "Michiba-sama's a wonderful instructor. I've learned a lot from him already."

"Has he taught you anything about giant eel?"

"Not really, he really wants to, but he can never get his hands on any eel. It's not that common around here."

"Well, hopefully you'll still be able to help us with the culinary commentary today, OK? Welcome. And next to her is her grandfather, the current chief of Mizuho, Igaguri Fujibayashi, pleasure to have you here, sir."

"It's an honor," the Chief said, bowing.

"Sheena said you don't get eel that much, is that true?"

"Yes, it's true," Igaguri began, "we usually have to import it from outside the village, but every twenty years or so we get a colony of eel in the river, and we only use those eels for special occasions."

"Well, the three-year anniversary of the world regeneration sounds like a special enough occasion to use it. Enjoy today's battle, sir."

Igaguri thanked Fukui, who went on to introduce "our color-commentator, Dr. Yukio Hattori," who had other things on his mind. He was busy looking at his monitor, which showed Regal nailing an eel to his cutting board.

"Now, check out what Chef Bryant's doing," Hattori interrupted, "he's filleting the eel from the back."

"Not the belly?" Fukui asked. "What's the difference?"

"Well, there really isn't, but cutting the eel from the belly carries some hara-kiri, or suicide, implications there—I know most chefs from Mizuho, whenever they work with eel, never cut it from the belly because of that."

"Yes, that's correct," Igaguri confirmed. "There's also another reason that I'm not allowed to say, because it's a village secret protected by our laws, but Sheena, you know what I'm talking about, right?"

"All too well, Grandpa. I'm just glad I didn't have to—MMPH!"

"OK, you've said too much already," he said, quickly covering his granddaughter's mouth. Hattori and Fukui both laughed, noting that a guest commentator never actually silenced the other guest while in the booth. Igaguri mouthed to Fukui (so that the microphones wouldn't pick him up), "I'll tell you off-air."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Lloyd and Colette sat at a long table away from the announcers' booth, watching the action. The Iron Chefs—including Genis, since he was now one of them—were watching intently as well, most of them relieved that they didn't have to contend with one of the trickiest ingredients in the book. Lloyd had thought he heard Ishinabe babble about how they never gave him a live ingredient as the theme during his tenure, and how he was relieved he wasn't battling today. His suspicions were confirmed when Morimoto jokingly shut him up when he said, "Oh, relax, it's not that hard."

"Aren't you glad they made the Tethe'allans go first?" Lloyd asked Colette.

"Oh, I know," she replied. "I couldn't bring myself to look at a creature that would become our dinner in a matter of minutes. I have no problem fighting creatures that cause us harm, but I can't take an innocent creature and—"

"OK, yeah, we get the point, Colette," Genis interrupted. "Besides, didn't you make special arrangements with Chairman Kaga for him to select the theme so that you _didn't_ have to worry about that?"

"I know, but I don't want to watch, either…"

"You're gonna wish you are now, Colette…look at what Presea's doing!" Genis said, tugging at her sleeve. Presea had taken out a couple of cucumbers and had begun carving them into flowers for the plating arrangement, which had drawn applause from the crowd. She acknowledged in kind.

"Damn, she's good," Sakai leaned over and whispered to Genis.

_And this coming from the guy who's known as the Delacroix of the culinary world…_ the young mage thought.

"THIRTY MINUTES HAVE ELAPSED," the clock called out.

"Has it really been thirty?!" Lloyd gasped.

"Yeah, that clock goes by faster than you think," Genis replied. "I remember in my two battles, I was scrambling. I thought I had fifteen minutes left, but I really only had five."

_I hope that doesn't happen to me when I get up there later…_ the swordsman thought. All worries about his upcoming battle, however, were pushed to the back of his mind as his stomach rumbled. Regal had skewered several chunks of eel meat and held it over an open flame.

"That looks sooooooo good…" he babbled, mouth hanging wide open.

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"Take a look over on Chef Bryant's side, where you can see him holding some skewered pieces of eel over the flame—this is his variation on a Japanese-style kabayaki grill, which he told me he'll serve over a bed of rice glazed with his own sauce. Actually, you see this pot over here? Let me tell you what's in the mixture for his sauce…"

"A modified teriyaki sauce?" muttered Sakai as Ohta rattled off the list of ingredients. "And he's only got thirty minutes left…will he have enough time?"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Dishes on both sides were beginning to take shape with less than half the battle remaining. Regal's Tethe'alla kabayaki (as he dubbed it) was making the crowd's mouths water as he continued to work on his sauce, which puzzled the commentators when he added some hot pepper flakes to it. He had already plated a bed of rice and garnished it with some fresh vegetables, and the eel that was to rest on top was still over the fire. He also had thrown a couple of eels into an earthenware pot, leaving Igaguri curious.

"Hey, take a look at Chef Regal—what's he doing with that pot?"

Hattori adjusted his glasses. "I actually have no idea here…"

"Fukui-san!"

"Whatcha got?"

"In this earthenware pot Chef Bryant has fried some garlic and rubbed an habanero pepper on the bottom, and to this mixture he's added a whole eel, chopped green onions, and what I believe to be some spinach leaves."

"OK, thanks big fella…"

"Oh, OK—I think I know," Hattori lit up. "He's going to try something called _angulas_—it's a Spanish-style eel fry. He's going to add water to this and then take the eels, and I guess the vegetables as well, out when the water boils."

"So is this going to be a soup?" Fukui asked.

"Ah…it could be," Hattori replied.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Presea was cracking some eggs into a bowl and keeping an eye on the sliced eel on the grill. She had also butterfly-cut some sections of eel, forming a kind of pocket in each section, and a soup stock with the heads of the eel on the burners. Her rice cooker was also in action, leaving the commentators puzzled. All her focus, however, was directed to the eggs.

"Now, what's this, Chef Combatir cracking some eggs here?" Fukui inquired.

"It's gotta be _tamagoyaki_," Sheena put in. "Look, there's the sugar and soy sauce going in."

"But where will the eel come into play in this?" her grandfather countered.

"Fukui-san!"

"You got some answers?"

"Shihna-chan is exactly right—this is a _tamagoyaki_ mixture Chef Combatir is working on. It consists of eggs, sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and a little bit of salt and pepper. We don't know where eel will factor into this dish, though."

"Thanks Ohta, well, Shihna-chan, you called it, but still no word on that eel yet…"

"Hey, look," Hattori interrupted, "she's got some slices on the grill right next to the tamagoyaki pan. I wonder if those will be for the omelet?"

"But she can't just place them on top, can she?" Igaguri asked.

"Maybe she'll roll them inside the omelet and paint the teriyaki sauce on afterwards?"

"It's a risky move, she might overcook the eel, but stranger things have happened in this kitchen," Hattori replied. Sheena smirked. There was no way she could have _not _called this dish correctly—she recalled Presea doing something similar, but with sea urchin instead. It was a simple (if a little expensive) dish that she really enjoyed, and all signs pointed to the same dish being prepared with the giant eel.

"Now the egg mixture goes into the pan—that doesn't take very long to cook—and there goes the eel, just like Sheena had said!"

She shot Igaguri a "told-you-so" look as Fukui commented that she was "on a roll."

"Just look at that—it looks so delicious on the plate! And there's the teriyaki sauce on top of that—man alive, _I'm_ getting hungry here!" he added.

"Now is this going to be served as-is?" Hattori asked. "I swear I've never seen a dish quite like this before."

"Pretty much," Sheena replied. "She rarely adds rice to this, but she might. I think it'll be as-is, though."

"FIFTEEN MINUTES TO GO," came the time call.

"All right, fifteen minutes left in the first semifinal match of this historic Aselia Cup, Iron Chef Symphonia, the Tethe'alla Semifinal between Regal Bryant and Presea Combatir!"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

On the kitchen floor, everything appeared to be in fine order on Presea's side. Her unagi-tamagoyaki was cut into triangular pieces and stood straight up on the plate. She then placed a fried eel head in front of the small omelettes. When put together, the two separate pieces were made to look like a fish with a rather elaborate tail. Some of the cucumber flowers from earlier in the battle had found their way to this dish.

Her second dish was just about complete with a little less than fifteen minutes to go in the battle. Sections of grilled eel were folded into pockets, and were stuffed with a kind of pico de gallo she created (Ohta didn't press for details about the ingredients).

She had plans for a third appetizer, a simple grilled eel sushi roll—the rice was just now being seasoned, and the eel she was to use was just coming off the flame. She lightly glazed it with some ponzu sauce, which had the commentators scratching their heads until they realized she didn't prepare any kind of teriyaki sauce like Regal had.

She had Yuko work on the main course, an Ozette-style eel stew. Vegetables native to Ozette, such as pine mushrooms and cabbage, were added to the stew, which was nothing more than a simple miso broth.

"Here," Presea called to Yuko, handing her a hollowed-out bamboo leaf basket she wove earlier in the battle. "Put some tofu in there and float it in the soup."

While that was happening, Presea focused her energy on her artistry—carving garnishes for each of her four dishes. She split some lemons into wedges, peeled back a little more than half of the skin, and made some incisions into the skin. She tucked the peeled portion into the part that was still intact, unfurling each "ray" of lemon skin. This caught Sheena's attention.

"Hey, look at what Presea's doing! That looks so pretty…" she gushed.

"Yeah, look at that," Igaguri proclaimed in awe. "It looks like the sun peeking out over the horizon of the Tethe'alla sea…my goodness, it's too pretty to eat!"

"Not only appetizing, but visually appealing as well…you've got to win over the judges both ways in order to win in Kitchen Stadium, and Chef Combatir's trying her hardest to get it done!" Fukui announced.

_Everything is just fine,_ she thought as she looked at the clock.

_Eleven minutes, thirty-seven seconds remaining. Fifty percent output should be sufficient._

On the other side, Regal wasn't quite scrambling. However, he was not nearly as organized as Presea was in her dishes—he had only one completely finished, what he dubbed "Ume-unagi salad", which was simply boiled eel and chopped lettuce combined with umeboshi* and a ginger dressing. His eel fry was still cooking, and he had just begun work on another dish.

"TEN MINUTES TO GO," the clock called.

"All right, ten minutes left in this first semifinal," Fukui announced, "and both sides wildly different from one another as we wind down this match—Chef Combatir, the carving artist from Ozette, calm, cool, and collected throughout this battle—Chef Bryant, the President of Lezareno, scrambling to get these dishes finished in time—it looks like he's just starting on his fourth one—"

"Fukui-san!"

"Take it, Ohta!"

"I asked Chef Bryant if he'll be able to make it with just ten minutes left in the battle and he seemed shocked when I told him. 'TEN MINUTES?!' he shouted. 'Oh no, I've got to get moving!' I think he's in panic mode."

"Thanks, big fella—Chef Bryant obviously feeling the pressure of the time limit beginning to set in, he's not usually one to be overly vocal about his panicking, but then again we've seen some very strange things in this Kitchen Stadium…"

"Now, what's Regal got going on here?" Sheena asked, pointing to her monitor. Regal held a large bowl containing what appeared to be pancake batter, and was whipping it furiously.

"Eel pancakes?" Fukui replied, a tone of worry permeating his voice. "Doesn't sound that appetizing to me…"

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"This is actually _okonomiyaki_*batter, and to this batter he's added green onions, carrots, and red bell peppers. The eel, from what I've been told, he's grilled and will sit right on top."

"All right, thanks big fella, so we've got eel _okonomiyaki_ coming from Chef Bryant's side. That rounds out his set of four—we see here one of his assistants putting the finishing touches on that kabayaki-style grill, doesn't that look delicious!"

Regal's assistant, Philippe, was crouched over the set of bowls, pouring on the teriyaki sauce.

"I sure hope he has time for that okonomiyaki…" Igaguri added. "I'm not sure if ten minutes is going to be enough time for a proper preparation…"

"Make that about eight minutes and change, Chief, and Chef Bryant is really scrambling over there…"

"Yeah, I've gotta say, he's a bit more tense than he usually is…" Sheena remarked. "But Presea seems calm over on her side…"

"Looks like it to me," Fukui replied as the commentators turned their attention over to the other side of the kitchen. "All her dishes appear to be finished, and now it looks like she's just putting on the finishing touches on a few of them here…"

The pink-haired woodcutter ventured away from the kitchen into a nearby clearing where some leaves from a giant tree had fallen on the soft grass. She scooped some of the fallen golden brown foliage into a basket and hurried back to the stadium, where she washed the leaves and arranged them around the bowl housing her Ozette-style eel stew.

"Hey, where'd she get those leaves from?" Sheena asked.

"Fukui-san!"

"You got it?"

"I do indeed—Chef Combatir actually left the kitchen for a couple of minutes and went into a nearby forest to pull the leaves you see here right off the ground."

"Well, there's something you'll never see in the indoor Kitchen Stadium," Hattori deadpanned.

"FIVE MINUTES TO GO."

"All right, five minutes left, we're approaching the finish line in this opening battle, the Tethe'alla Semifinal in the first-ever Aselia Cup!"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

_Patience, patience, hurry but don't be reckless,_ Regal thought as he flipped the okonomiyaki over, barely catching it in the frying pan. The voice of the most recent five-minute time call rang out in his head as he frantically attempted to finish his other three dishes.

"Regal!"

"What?!"

"You better check on that eel fry! I think it's way past done!"

_Oh, shit!_ he cursed in his head as he dropped the pan, barking at Philippe to take over for him as scurried over to his earthenware pot. He lifted the lid on his eel fry, and breathed a sigh of relief.

_Whew…another minute on the fire and it would've overcooked…_

He quickly moved the pot from the flame to the plating area, noting to himself to serve the soup at the judges' table. Two dishes done. The kabayaki was ready, just waiting for the sauce to finish simmering. He checked on the sauce, stuck a spoon into the pot and tasted what he had.

_Hmm…needs another couple of minutes. Not sweet enough…_

"THREE MINUTES TO GO."

He nearly dropped the hot lid on his foot when he heard Philippe shout in terror.

"What happened?!" the blue-haired man uncharacteristically shouted.

"I-I'm sorry! I tried flipping it over and missed…" Philippe stammered, recklessly trying to clean up the fallen okonomiyaki.

Regal growled. "Just…work on some more batter!" he barked. "Leave the cooking to me!" Philippe ran off, now thoroughly afraid the blue-haired man was going to kick him to Derris-Kharlan and back for that costly mistake.

The commentators' remarks weren't helping Regal's rising temper, either. Yes, he realized there were less than three minutes left. Yes, he realized this mistake would cost him even more time. Yes, he knew another little comment about how he's gotta move it or lose it would make him blow up in the commentators' faces.

Yes, he was also totally under control. He dropped another spoonful of batter into the pan and handed the bowl to Philippe as he waited for more batter.

_Two more of these after this one…_ Regal thought as he checked the clock. Less than two minutes left now. He craned his neck over to Presea's side of the kitchen—she was completely finished.

_No!_ he thought, jerking his attention back to the frying pan. _Focus…you're never going to finish on time if you don't focus…now flip it over and land it!_

This time, the vegetable-laden pancake landed in the pan without any trouble. Regal smirked as he listened to it sizzle some more.

"ONE MINUTE TO GO."

"All right, one minute left, the final 60 seconds ticking down in this first semifinal battle—Chef Combatir of Ozette, she's all finished on her side with plenty of time to spare—Chef Bryant of Altamira, still a long way to go with very little time left…" Fukui announced. Regal pretended not to hear that last part.

"Is the batter ready, Philippe?" he barked.

"Yeah, here it is!" he said, running over with the bowl.

"Get the plates out and put these on them!" he shouted, motioning to the finished okonomiyaki. "I've got some grilled eel by the sink that needs to go on top of each one!"

"THIRTY SECONDS TO GO."

Presea looked over at Regal's side of the kitchen, wondering what was causing him to be a bit more erratic than he usually is. She smirked and turned to Yuko.

"I think we have triumphed," she deadpanned.

"Philippe!" Regal called. "Two more!"

"Right here!"

"FIFTEEN SECONDS TO GO."

"Hurry, the eel!"

"One, two, three, four, five, yep, that's six plates!"

"TEN SECONDS TO GO."

"We got everything else?"

"Screw it, if we don't have it now, we're not going to!"

"FIVE SECONDS."

"THREE."

"TWO."

"ONE."

"And that's it! The cooking's done, the Giant Eel Semifinal Battle is OVAH!"

Cheers, applause, and whistles filled the stadium as the final gong rang out. Regal wiped his brow, taking a deep breath and shaking hands with his assistants. Presea poured each of her assistants a glass of water and toasted them.

_What a relief…_ Regal thought as he saw Ohta come up to him with the dreaded microphone.

"How was that hour?"

"Too short," he panted, wiping his brow again. "There were some things I knew I could've done better if I managed my time better. But then again, this is an unfamiliar kitchen, so that was another thing."

"How did your dishes turn out?"

"Eh, I think they were OK. If nothing else, I think I pulled off the kabayaki grill perfectly."

"So does that mean a win?"

"Would be nice."

Regal sighed as Ohta left him alone. He headed for the fridge for a bottle of water as the crowd applauded him and Ohta went to bother Presea.

"You looked very calm throughout the battle," he said.

"I did?" she asked, tilting her head at him. "Oh no, not at all. I was extremely nervous throughout, and it was only made worse by the fact that I couldn't grab the eels at the very beginning."

"But how did your dishes turn out?"

"Probability of my victory: one hundred percent," she said, monotone, hoping to scare Ohta away so she didn't have to talk to him anymore. It worked, as the man quickly backed away and retreated to the announcer's booth.

The two chefs collapsed into the chairs in the holding area as the panel was ushered to the table. Regal had drawn to have his dishes tasted first.

"I don't know how you managed to stay that calm, Presea…" he sighed.

"Nothing more than simple time management," she deadpanned. "I saw you scrambling over there—did you finish on time?"

"Barely."

"They looked good, though—Alicia would've been proud."

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**Umeboshi: salt-cured, pickled plums. Supposedly the Japanese need one a day to keep the doctor away.**

**Okonomiyaki: Japanese savory pancake.**

**Whew! Battles are fun to write, but they're long. Tasting and judgment to come…in a little while. Right now I'm going to take a little break.**

**EDIT 4/5/10: IN THE MEANTIME...I'd appreciate reviews as well, but if you enjoyed the story, go to my profile and vote for who you would like to win this battle (or for the one whose dishes sound better). The winner will battle against either Lloyd or Colette in the final.**


	6. Five: The Panel's Delectable Task

**The battle may be over, but the judges still have to have their say—this, after all, decides who cooks one more time and who goes home. The poll will still be open, as I will not announce the winner until I feel up to writing the next semifinal match. Until then, enjoy this one and don't forget to vote for the winner!**

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**Chapter 5: The Panel's Delectable Task**

**==FAHRENHEIT 451== (FUKUI NARRATING)**

Chef Bryant is offering four dishes.

First, Ume-Unagi Salad. The sourness of the salt-cured pickled plums brings out the natural flavors of the grilled eel, which is tossed in a bed of fresh iceberg lettuce. A ginger dressing which subdues the powerful flavor of the umeboshi accompanies this dish.

Second, Unagi Okonomiyaki. Fresh vegetables add a crisp, summery, and earthy flavor to this unique Japanese pancake. The grilled eel, which sits on top, adds the essence of the sea to this worldly dish.

Third is Tethe'alla Kabayaki. He combines the traditional Japanese kabayaki-grill style with his own spicy teriyaki sauce, breaking new ground with this innovative creation. The rice, cooked to perfection, beautifully complements the eel.

Last is Spanish-Style Eel Fry. The pot symbolizes the earth, and all it contains. The soup and the fried whole eel are symbolic of the sea, while the vegetables that complement it are the products of the nearby shore. And the habanero pepper and garlic rubbed on the bottom of the pot add fire to this dynamic finish.

Chef Combatir is also offering four dishes.

First, Barbeque Eel Roll. She creates an inside-out sushi roll, which provides a soft, sour texture before arriving at the crisp eel in the middle. The ponzu sauce adds a hint of sourness to the eel.

Second, Eel Tamagoyaki, Dragon-shaped. She added the fried eel head to paint the picture of a ferocious dragon in the light of the rising sun in the tasters' minds. The sweet Japanese omelet envelops a slice of grilled eel, and the teriyaki sauce painted on top makes this dish almost as sweet as candy.

Third, Stuffed Butterfly-cut Eel. Cross-sections of eel serve as a pocket for her mild, yet refreshing, pico de gallo. The red onions add a kick and provide a nice break from the sweetness in her previous dishes.

Last is Ozette-style Eel Stew. A miso broth serves as the stage for native Ozette vegetables, which draw out the natural flavors of the boiled eel inside. And the bamboo basket floating in the soup is filled with tofu—the pearl of an oyster that is slowly being reborn.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

**==FIGHTING 17****TH****== (FUKUI NARRATING)**

Chairman Kaga is in hot pursuit of another dream, the keeping of peace through good food with the historic Aselia Cup Tournament, which kicks off today with the Tethe'alla Semifinal.

The only way he fights with his hands is in Kitchen Stadium, the President of the Lezareno Company, Chef Regal Bryant.

He'll cross knives with the carving mistress of Ozette, artist and chef Presea Combatir.

Chairman Kaga unveils the theme for this first tournament battle, a slippery seafood heavyweight: it is giant eel!

Chef Bryant, scrambling to the very end, barely manages to finish his set of four dishes.

Calm, cool, and collected to the finish line, Chef Combatir also offers up a delectable quartet.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Regal gulped as he glanced at the judges' table, which overlooked the river in an area separate from the kitchens. He knew Sheena and Chief Igaguri were there, as was the Chairman who didn't judge anyway, but the rest of the panel had him a tad bit worried. Tokunaga took the seat next to the Chief, and Regal frowned. His frown only deepened when he saw Frank and Phaidra sit next to him.

_I should be used to cooking for unfamiliar guests by now, but why am I even more nervous now? Two of them are Sylvaranti, and Genis tells me a Sylvaranti's palate is vastly different from a Tethe'allan's…_

"Chef Bryant, we're ready for you," Mr. Matsuo called as he poked his head into the holding room. Presea nodded at the older blue-haired man as he nervously approached the judges' table. He bowed to the Chairman and the judges as he assumed his position.

"I hear it was a tough one today," Kaga remarked.

"Yeah, don't make me do it again," Regal replied. "I pretty much never get eel here in Tethe'alla, so it was hard coming up with suitable flavors for each of these dishes. And, of course, they were live, which made things even more difficult—we're not used to working with live ingredients."

"Well, let's begin, shall we?" the Chairman asked as Regal's first course, the salad, was brought to the table.

_Well then…here we go._

"What is this dressing?" Kaga asked.

"It's a ginger dressing. Umeboshi is naturally very sour, so I wanted to neutralize the strong sourness with a spice. Both should still draw out the grilled flavor of the eel, so please be sure you eat all elements of the dish at once," Regal explained.

"This is…ah, quite unusual," Tokunaga grimaced as he took another bite.

"You mean you like it?" the Chairman prodded.

"Well…" The panel laughed. Regal doubled over in mock pain, chuckling along with the rest of the panel.

_Well, shit, _he thought.

"It's not a total loss…" Sheena chimed in. "I think, Regal, you had good intentions—I see them coming through now that I chew on this some more, you're right about that eel, and the umeboshi…" She flailed, trying not to put down Regal's cooking. "Okay, yeah, Tokunaga's right, this is unusual."

The panel erupted in laughter—Kaga gleefully watched from his seat as Regal smiled wryly and Igaguri chided his granddaughter on speaking before thinking her commentary out thoroughly. Regal quietly ducked away from the maddening crowd to fetch his next course.

"No, really, I think this has some interesting flavors, it's just that none of them belongs to the eel," Frank managed to cough out through hearty guffaws. The panel, with much difficulty, finally managed to calm themselves just as Regal's second course arrived at the table.

"Oh! The okonomiyaki…" Igaguri noted with great interest. "I've been waiting to see how this turned out."

"Yes, we saw you visibly struggle with this one," Sheena added.

Regal furrowed his brow, a pained expression on his face. "I'm just glad we got this one done," he sighed. "It was difficult, but we made it. I just hope the flavors are there…"

Frank picked up the savory pancake with his chopsticks, eyeing it curiously. "This is a first-time experience for me," he said, dropping a piece into his mouth, "because this kind of dish was unheard of in Sylvarant. I like the texture…crispy, yet soft on the inside. And when I add the eel to the mix," he paused, taking another bite with eel this time, "it's a wonderful array of flavors. You have it all in this dish."

"It's wonderfully put together," Tokunaga added, "but I feel you have too many flavors going on in this dish. I would have liked to have seen the eel drawn out more…"

"You can eat the eel by itself, how's that for drawing it out more?" Phaidra quipped. The rest of the panel chuckled as Tokunaga glared at her. Regal seemed to relax a bit as he heard the laughter of the other five thousand people in the Stadium, who were watching intently on the jumbotrons.

_Now this one, I know they'll love this one…_ he thought as he fetched his Tethe'alla kabayaki.

"Careful, the sauce is spicy," he warned as he served it himself. "But it's my own creation."

"Yes, it's very good," Phaidra confirmed, then paused as she suddenly reached for her glass of water. "Though it's very hot…" she added, fanning her mouth.

"I don't think it's that hot," Igaguri countered. "I wished it was a tad sweeter, but I forget sometimes that you only have an hour to do this. It's very good for such a short preparation time."

"I personally would've liked it more if the sauce wasn't spicy," Sheena added. "Everything else, though, is genius—the rice is so soft, complementing the chewy eel…I loved it except for the sauce."

Regal turned to retrieve his final course, the angulas. Chairman Kaga eyed the pot with much interest, thinking outside the box as he watched the blue-haired man serve the dish himself.

"A soup?"

"Yes, and a spicy one at that," Regal replied. "It's my take on a dish I had many, many years ago and I just couldn't get enough of, so I learned how to make it myself. Of course, now, I've put my own spin on it."

Kaga eagerly dipped his spoon in the steaming broth and sipped while the rest of the panel took in the eel and the vegetables. Everyone immediately reached for their water glasses.

"Damn, Regal, do you have an unhealthy obsession for spicy food or what?" Sheena coughed as she shot him a harsh look. "At this rate I don't know if it'll be a fair fight for Presea, because I can't taste anything else but fire!"

"But you see, Shihna-chan," her grandfather added in a soothing tone, "he's got all the elements of the world in this dish—the light from the sun which gave these vegetables power to grow from the earth, the eel and the broth holding the essence of the sea, and the spiciness you keep complaining about is the fire that burns within us all. A worthy candidate for the Aselia Dish, I think."

"But how does it taste?" Kaga retorted, to the panel's amusement.

"It's superb, no question about it," Igaguri replied. "All the ingredients harmonize perfectly—it's very well done."

Regal bowed as the panel fell silent in consideration of the Chief's words. Kaga returned the bow, thanking him for the excellent meal.

_This, no doubt, will be a very difficult task for the judges today…_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Well?" Presea asked.

The older man sighed. "I think I did okay, given my problems in the kitchen…they seemed to take to my dishes well, except for that first one…"

_But you need to make a favorable impression on the judges at the start…_ Presea thought. Mr. Matsuo waved at her and signaled that the panel was ready to taste the little woodcutter's dishes, interrupting her thoughts.

She took a deep breath before confronting the judges' table.

_I only know the tastes of one of the panel members…I hope I did the theme ingredient justice…_

The Chairman interrupted her reverie. "You looked very calm while in the kitchen today," he remarked.

"Oh, no sir, in fact very much the opposite," Presea replied. "When there are five thousand people watching me, it's a little intimidating. I'm just happy that I created what I did, and I hope you enjoy what I have to offer. Shall we begin?"

The Chairman nodded his approval, and the panel was served Presea's sushi roll.

"I'm not used to seeing a sushi roll like this," Kaga noted.

"But it's a very safe approach," Phaidra remarked. "I've had this kind of sushi roll before—I just wish, Presea, that you had done something to make it even more unique. It tastes just fine, but the originality is lacking."

"Well, I'll say this much," Igaguri replied, "I've never had an eel roll with ponzu sauce on it, but it's an odd combination of flavors…"

Presea only stared blankly before the Chairman called for her second course, the eel tamagoyaki. Everyone picked up an omelet with their chopsticks except for Phaidra, who was still gazing at the carvings and other artistry that adorned the plate.

"This is almost too pretty to eat," she gushed. "I love these little cucumber flowers…and the whole arrangement is magnificent!"

"Just wait until you take a bite," Sheena added. "The sweet eggs are a perfect complement to the sweetness of the eel and the sauce inside. I mean, I know you used to do this with sea urchin roe, Presea, but I have to say I like this a lot better."

"And it's even better when you squeeze a little bit of the lemon over it," Tokunaga added. "The arrangement was genius, the taste even more so."

"Indeed, this is excellent," Frank added. "Didn't really care for the fried eel head, though—"

"Oh, you weren't supposed to eat that," Presea interrupted. "That was just for decoration."

Frank fell silent, a little embarrassed. Phaidra reassured him that everything was just fine as Presea's third course, the stuffed eel, arrived at the table. She looked at the panel with worry upon seeing the puzzled looks on their faces.

_But at least the last course will turn everything around…_ she thought.

"This is…rather unusual," Tokunaga deadpanned.

"Oh, now don't give us that, you said that the first time and we all know how you really felt about it," Sheena growled. "Go on, stop beating around the bush."

The panel laughed as Tokunaga struggled to come up with the right words.

"I'm not necessarily saying this is bad—"

"Yes, you are," Sheena teased.

"—it's just a weird pairing, raw tomatoes and grilled eel. I don't think they match very well at all."

"I have to say I agree," the Chief added, "the onions and tomatoes leave a rather unpleasant aftertaste in my mouth. It's a creative idea, though."

"I just wish the taste was as good as the artistry on the plate, is all I have to say," Frank added.

"But this one," Presea replied after a break in the action, "will make up for all the mistakes I've made, I hope."

The panel craned their necks over at the large pot that was brought over to the side of the judges' table—it contained Presea's Ozette-style eel stew, which wowed the judges with its pleasant aroma as soon as the lid came off.

"Smells so good…" Sheena sighed.

"And everything comes together beautifully in the soup," Frank said after a few bites. "Your presentation throughout your set has been phenomenal, and I've seen a new side of cuisine today. For that, I thank you greatly."

"I say, everything harmonizes quite well," Tokunaga said, eyeing Sheena warily in case she knocked him on his words again, "but most impressively, the eel is definitely at the center of the dish. I thought the miso broth would overpower it, but it's not…"

"C'mon, admit it," Sheena began to poke Presea.

"Admit what?"

"You learned most of this from Ge—erm, Iron Chef Sage."

"Well, he trained me, yes, but these are all my original recipes…"

She winked at her. "He trained ya well. This set was dynamite."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"They're deliberating now…" Presea said to Regal as she returned to the holding room. "Shouldn't be more than ten minutes before we find out."

"What did they think?"

"I don't think I did too badly," she replied, fetching a glass of water. "Though as for the result, well, that's a different matter entirely."

"Well…" Regal sighed, "win or lose, I think Alicia would be proud of us both, don't you think?"

"Oh, that goes without saying. Though I never thought about using food as a way to promote peace…I guess the world would be a better place if all we were fighting over was just how good everything tastes. The only experimentation should take place here, not in laboratories using human vessels…"

"Hm."

They both sat in silence until Mr. Matsuo called them over to the kitchen.

"They're still deliberating in there, but we want you on the kitchen floor so that we can set up the camera shots. Oh, and remember, the final tapes an hour after the Sylvarant semifinal, so you two can relax backstage until then, do whatever you want, just be sure to be back by the final…"

They stood proudly in Kitchen Stadium, anxiously awaiting the Chairman. A low hum hung over the audience, some of whom were busily chatting about who they would choose as the winner.

Mr. Matsuo checked his watch from backstage. The show was running a little behind schedule—the second battle should have started twenty minutes ago.

_Well, at least everything is in place for the next battle…but the judges are taking a bit longer than usual…_

A producer handed Mr. Matsuo a black book, and he copied some notes onto a separate sheet of paper. The Chairman consulted with him, taking note of who to announce as the winner while looking through the book.

A loud voice came on over the stadium speakers, alerting the audience.

"The scores are in!"

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**A reminder, the poll is still open on my profile. So I now ask YOU the eternal question: whose cuisine reigns supreme? The poll will close on May 12. Stay tuned!**


	7. Six: Tournament Interlude and Act II

**We discover whose cuisine reigns supreme in the Tethe'alla Semifinal, and we kick off the proceedings of the Sylvarant Semifinal as well. Thanks to all who voted and reviewed so far; your input means so much to me as a writer. For now…the verdict.**

**In addition, there are major game spoilers if you don't know the truth behind some of the characters' backstories. You have been warned.**

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**Chapter 6: Tournament Interlude and Act II**

Applause sounded throughout the outdoor stadium as the Chairman led the tasting panel near the ingredient stand. Regal and Presea stood by their positions at the kitchen floor, anxiously awaiting the Chairman's verdict. The sun hung over the Grand Tethe'alla Bridge, the shadow of which cascaded over Kitchen Stadium. It was a little past four o'clock, and the golden glint of the sun began to shine on the river's surface.

The applause subsided as the Chairman reached his position behind the ingredient stand and held up a finger.

"The Aselia Cup Tournament," Kaga began, "began with these two chefs crossing cuisines on this culinary battlefield. Both chefs created what I consider worldly cuisine that I believe communicated my message perfectly; I could not have anticipated a more exciting opening battle to this tournament. However, there is only one ticket to the final."

Here the Chairman paused, lowering his hands.

"The total points were tied—91 to 91."

A gasp resounded throughout the audience. The panel's mouths hung wide open.

"So, we decide the winner by votes."

The two chefs looked at each other. Now there was no indication of a clear winner, making both chefs quiver with nervousness.

"Here's the verdict."

**==TIME LAPSE==**

"Chef Regal Bryant and Chef Presea Combatir, two heroes of regeneration, fought an impressive beginning to the Aselia Cup Tournament in the Giant Eel Battle. Chef Bryant suffered some missteps along the way but managed to finish a dynamic set, while Chef Combatir was focused all the way to the end. Now with total points tied, the judge's votes will decide—the winner moves on, the loser goes home! Who takes it? Whose cuisine reigns supreme?"

"The five judges voted as follows," Kaga said after a long pause, opening up a black book.

"Phaidra Brunel: 18-16, Regal Bryant."

Regal blinked in surprise as the stadium was filled with applause.

"Frank Brunel: 19-17, Presea Combatir."

Presea's emotion did not change as the applause gradually increased.

"Tokunaga Hashimoto: 19-18, Presea Combatir."

"Igaguri Fujibayashi: 19-17, Regal Bryant."

The stadium was in a riot, anticipating the result of Sheena's vote, the deciding vote.

"And Sheena Fujibayashi…" the Chairman paused, letting the audience's wild reactions die down before he handed down the final vote.

"…20-19, Presea Combatir!"

Presea blinked, her mouth beginning to hang open. The stadium was cheering wildly.

"That means the winner is…PRESEA COMBATIR!"

**==FAHRENHEIT 451==**

"Chef Combatir did it!" Fukui exclaimed. "The woodcutter from Ozette has triumphed over the President of the Lezareno Company in the most nail-biting finish we've ever seen here in Kitchen Stadium! Her Zen-like focus and determination has put her one step closer to the Aselia Cup!"

"No matter which one of us wins," Lloyd told Colette over the applause, "I think we're going to be in trouble against Presea in the final…"

"Yeah, her food looked so pretty…" she gushed. "I hope they don't think any less of us because our food doesn't look pretty…"

"Well, we'll just have to win in taste, I guess."

Back on the kitchen floor, Presea and Regal shook hands over the battle, neither side appearing disappointed with the result.

"How I managed to tie you in points, I'll still never know," Regal told her. "They picked me apart so much in regards to taste, I was sure you were going to run away with the match."

"They weren't exactly showering my food with praise, either. You and I, I suppose, are now world-class chefs…"

"Well, you'll have to wait until you win the tournament for that one," Regal joked. The two were ushered offstage—Regal found a seat in the audience next to Genis, while Presea was taken backstage to the holding area before the final.

"And now," Fukui announced, "we await the entrance of the Sylvarant semifinalists. Who will move on to face Presea Combatir in the Aselia Cup final? In the next 90 minutes or so, we'll know for sure!"

"I never saw that one coming," Raine whispered to Genis as the crew reset the Stadium for the next battle. "I thought for sure Regal would win. Just goes to show how much I know about cooking…"

_Yeah, sis, not much, _Genis thought. He was smiling throughout the announcement of the winner, wishing the producers would let Presea sit next to him during the Sylvarant Semifinal.

"The next one, though, will be very tough to call…" an auburn-haired man said behind them, taking the empty seat next to Raine.

"_Kratos?_" Genis gawked. "What…what are you doing here?"

"I have been watching the program for quite some time now—"

"You get television in Derris-Kharlan?" Raine gasped. "When did that happen?"

"I'll explain that later. Anyway, after I watched the program for a while I actually came back here and observed a match myself—if I remember correctly it was a cucumber battle with the man in silver as the Iron Chef. I became even more intrigued when you became an Iron Chef, Genis—you can certainly hold your own in the kitchen."

The young mage gulped. "But the tournament…"  
"Well, since I haven't been there for many of the major events in my son's life before the Regeneration, I thought I'd try to make it up to him today to be here."

"But how did you—"

"Let's just say Chairman Kaga has a network of people he uses to get to me," the seraph said, relaxing in his seat. "What's happened so far?"

"Well, Presea just won the first match of the tournament, and she'll face whoever wins this match in the final," Raine said. "And like you said, Kratos, this will be a very difficult match to call, considering Lloyd and Colette's styles are very much alike. When we went to their restaurant three weeks ago, I couldn't remember who created what dish while I was eating—all I know is that one of them had to have created it."

"And they both are really good at drawing out flavors in food," Genis added. "It's a well-balanced dish no matter what."

"Since when did the two of them have a restaurant?" Kratos asked.

"I don't know," Genis replied, "but they're a smashing success in Iselia. You should go check them out sometime, you'll know which restaurant is theirs when you see it."

"Why is that?"

"Oh, you'll see."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Chairman Kaga entered Kitchen Stadium once again to applause and retook his position behind the ingredient stand. The crowd appeared reenergized by the break in taping shows—perhaps, he thought, it had to do with knowing who was competing in the upcoming battle.

"The Iron Chef Symphonia: Aselia Cup Tournament," he began. "Already one chef has advanced to the final battle. We must now discover her opposition in the next battle, the Sylvarant Semifinal. Competing in this match are two names I believe you all know very well. So let's bring them on! First, co-owner and co-head chef of _Anna_ in Iselia, Lloyd Irving!"

**==BURN IT ALL==**

"Marching into Kitchen Stadium is the acknowledged leader of the World Regeneration party, Lloyd Irving, who's retained his trademark red outfit for this battle. He'll have to lead his side of the kitchen to total victory today with the Aselia Cup in his sights!"

_Did he really name the restaurant after Anna? _Kratos thought, casting his glance away from Raine and Genis as Lloyd assumed his position on the challenger's side of the kitchen. _A tribute to those who have had lives taken due to the Exsphere projects, I'm sure…fitting._

"And, his opponent," the Chairman continued, "is his co-owner and co-head chef: Colette Brunel!"

**==CONFRONTATION==**

"And here comes the former Chosen of Sylvarant, the gentle Colette Brunel. She's dedicated her life to assuring the longevity and prosperity of this world—now she'll have to prove all she's worth in Kitchen Stadium against her childhood friend! The stage is set for the Sylvarant Semifinal—will it be Lloyd or Colette who will move on to face Presea in the Aselia Cup final? We'll know after this battle."

As the applause quieted, the Chairman cleared his throat.

"When you think of these two, you think of the World Regeneration. And when you think of the World Regeneration, you think of the regeneration of the Great Seed," he explained. "But the Great Seed needed something to house it in order for it to prosper. And then it came to me: a fruit. The flesh houses a very large seed, which is the source of the plant from which it comes from."

To no one's surprise, both Lloyd and Colette appeared perplexed at the Chairman's explanation of his inspiration. They exchanged puzzled looks, eliciting light laughter from the crowd. Sheena, who was now watching from the audience, furrowed her brow. Raine and Kratos looked at each other strangely. Even Genis appeared to have a hard time figuring out what the Chairman had decided for the theme.

"And now, I will announce it. The theme for the Sylvarant Semifinal is this!"

Kaga ripped the red tablecloth off the ingredient stand, releasing a dense cloud of dry ice. Various yellow- and red-colored fruits adorned the ascending platform, which everyone could now make out as the dry ice cleared. Genis smacked his head in sudden realization. Colette's eyes widened as she finally figured it out, while Lloyd was still lost in confusion.

"The theme for the Sylvarant Semifinal…" Kaga boomed, "…is MANGO!"

* * *

**Once again, thanks to all who voted in the poll. Sorry it's taken me so long to get this chapter up, but there's something called school that got in the way. Now that I'm out, I hope to update a bit more regularly.**

**But this actually marks the first time I'm not using meat or seafood as the theme ingredient! How will this play out? Stay tuned for the next chapter—Ryori no Tetsu-Shinfonia kono ato.**


	8. Seven: Mango Confront

**Here we go, with the Sylvarant Semifinal! Will it be Lloyd or Colette who will be joining Presea in the Aselia Cup Final? We'll find out in the next two chapters or so as the two heroes duke it out with mangoes in Kitchen Stadium!**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 7: Mango Confront**

}K{

シルヴァラント ジュンケッショウセン

ロイド・アーヴィング VS コレット・ブルーネル

MANGO CONFRONT

**==YOU GO, WE GO==**

"It's regeneration hero Lloyd Irving against former Sylvarant Chosen Colette Brunel in the second battle of the Aselia Cup Tournament, the Sylvarant Semifinal," Fukui announced. "Two childhood friends compete to strive for peace in this new world through good food, but which one will move on to compete against Presea Combatir in the tournament final? It's bound to be a sweet one today with mango as the theme—we are set, let's get it on!"

"ALLEZ CUISINE!" Kaga shouted. The stadium erupted in cheers as Lloyd and Colette high-fived each other at kitchen level.

"Bang a gong, Lloyd and Colette gettin' it on in the Sylvarant Semifinal of the Aselia Cup Tournament…" Fukui announced. "And—OH! A chef goes down out of the gate…"

As the two chefs sprinted up the stairs, Colette tripped and fell about halfway up to the ingredient stand, eliciting gasps from the audience. Lloyd had reached the top and quickly ran around the table to help her out.

"You OK?"

"I'm fine, Lloyd, I just…tripped."

Lloyd could only shake his head as he ran back to the other end of the ingredient stand, where his tray rested.

"Looks like Miss Brunel's OK, and now the two chefs are getting their hands on the selection of mangoes we have today…just one kind, it appears, but very bright red in color and, I'm sure, very ripe."

"That's right, and I've been told these are actually Iselian mangoes. They started cultivating mangoes there after the unification of the worlds—supposedly they're the sweeter cousins of the more bitter amango found in what was once the Latheon Gorge. But mangoes themselves were actually originally grown near Altamira, so only Tethe'alla had them for quite some time."

"No kidding, that's how the Chairman was able to get them here! And Chef Irving is wasting no time at all, he's already got a mango peeled and in the oven as we speak; there's no doubt about it, the man has his game face on today!"

"Fukui-san!"

"From the floor, Shinichiro Ohta, go!"

"I asked Chef Irving what it's like battling in Kitchen Stadium for the first time in such a high-stakes tournament, and he replied simply, 'I thought regenerating the world was hard! At least there I had my friends to help me out, but here I'm on my own!' And apparently he has a side bet with Chef Brunel—he put fifty gald on the outcome of the battle, so if nothing else he has to win so he doesn't lose money on the deal!"

"OK, well, an obviously nervous Chef Irving on one side of Kitchen Stadium—he seems to know what he's doing, though, so we'll see how this battle plays out for him. Meantime, on the other side, Chef Brunel having recovered from her little spill earlier, has now returned to her station and is breaking down some mangoes there—"

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"I asked Chef Brunel the same question and she answered, 'Winning or losing isn't important to me—I'm just here to show that we regenerated this world and we don't want our efforts to go to waste!'"

"OK, thanks, big fella, and this should be interesting having two childhood friends battle against each other in what could be the biggest battle of their lives. And now, let's introduce our guests for the Mango Battle: first, former Tethe'alla Chosen Zelos Wilder. Pleasure to have you with us, sir."

"Hey, what's up?" he replied, obviously mugging for the camera. Several high-pitched squeals could be heard from the audience as he winked at the camera. Fukui paid them no mind.

"Zelos, you ever have mango much?"

"Oh yeah, I love it," he replied. "I could eat that for the rest of my life. Love the taste, love the texture, everything about it. I just wish they were easier to get where I live."

"OK, well, enjoy what comes out of the kitchen today—I'm sure you will. And next to him is his sister, Seles Wilder."

"Hi, thank you for having me."

"What about you, Seles, do you like mangoes?"

"Well, being locked up in an abbey, I haven't had much access to exotic foods lately. I hear they're quite good, though, so I'm looking forward to the chefs' creations today."

"Really? Well, with the caliber of chefs we get here in Kitchen Stadium, I'm sure you'll enjoy every last bite of the dishes today. Please enjoy."  
"Thank you."

"And of course, our commentator, Dr. Yukio Hattori."

"Always a pleasure. And actually, Seles, before the show, I found out what the theme would be, and, uh—how should I say—_borrowed_ some of the mangoes from the stand," Hattori said, procuring a mango and a small knife from underneath the announcer's table. He began cutting open a mango and slicing small cubes for Seles to taste.

"Mmm…it's very soft…melts in your mouth, almost."

"Well, that's what happens when they're really ripe. Some of the less-ripe mangoes have a more leathery, fibrous texture and are a bit more sour," Hattori replied.

"I don't care whether or not they're really ripe, I could eat 'em all day," Zelos said, loudly slurping on a mango skin. Seles rolled her eyes at the gesture, while Fukui ignored him, trying to resume his commentary.

"OK, so back to the action here, and we see Chef Irving has some crabmeat in a bowl here, along with some other sauce, it appears?"

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"This is Dungeness crab that Chef Irving has in this bowl here, which he's lightly boiled before tossing it together with an Iselian tartar sauce that he's created himself—he hasn't told me what went in it, so we can assume it's some kind of secret."

"All right, thanks Ohta, and we've got a very secretive chef battling today, don't we?"

"Yeah, I've gotta say, it's not quite like Lloyd to hide stuff from people…he's usually very up-front about everything, even when he's stressed," Zelos remarked with a frown.

"But even if we knew what went into that tartar sauce, where would the mangoes play into this?" Seles asked, taking another mango cube to taste.

"I…honestly have no idea," Hattori replied, scratching his head.

"So a mystery sauce and a mystery crab dish in the early stages happening on Lloyd Irving's side."

"Fukui-san!"

"Yes, Ohta!"

"I asked Chef Irving what he thinks about today's theme ingredient, mangoes, and he said that he doesn't use them that often in his cooking—they're expensive and he hasn't quite wrapped his head around the whole prospect of cooking fruits. And when I asked him about that mango in the oven, he said, 'Does it look like I have any idea what I'm doing here?'"

"So Lloyd is just lettin' it all ride as he goes—interesting strategy for Kitchen Stadium, I think, but we'll see how it all plays out."

"Now check out what Colette has over here," Hattori said, calling the announcers' attention to the large bowl of leafy greens Colette had assembled. "I think we're going to have a salad come our way."

"Yeah, doesn't surprise me one bit," Zelos said. "Colette was always the most health-conscious of the bunch, and made it a point to include all kinds of fresh vegetables in her meals."

"Well, you can do no dietary wrong with a salad, and a great-looking one at that, with cubes of mango going into that one," Fukui added.

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"In this bowl Chef Brunel has romaine lettuce, arugula, radicchio, carrots, avocado, and mango—we're still trying to figure out what kind of dressing might go over this. And I also asked her what she thinks of the theme ingredient today, and she said that she loves any kind of fruit, but she's never really worked with mangoes that much, so she'll try some things she knows best with other fruits and substitute mangoes instead."

"FIFTEEN MINUTES HAVE ELAPSED," came the time call.

"OK, thanks Ohta, and fifteen minutes are already gone from the Sylvarant Semifinal of the Aselia Cup Tournament, the Mango Battle!"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

From his front-row seat, Kratos watched the proceedings of the battle on Lloyd's side of the kitchen with great interest.

_When—and where—did Lloyd learn to cook so well?_ he thought.

His eyes narrowed as he watched Lloyd punch small circle pieces out of a thin mango slice and lay them on top of the crabmeat, which was now resting in a circle mold. He removed the circle mold and topped the dish off with a small spoonful of black caviar.

"OK! Five more, just like that!" he barked to his sous-chefs as he rushed to find more ingredients. After cleaning some rice, he threw some mango cubes in the mix.

_I knew he would be a great leader from the moment I fought him…_ the seraph thought, smirking. He saw Lloyd put the rice bowl, which in addition to the mangoes included tofu, bok choy, and spinach, into the rice cooker. A few minutes later, Kratos began to smell the steam pulsing from the rice cooker.

_Oh wow…excellent._

He couldn't help but watch his son in awe at the command he had in the kitchen. Lloyd wasn't as hot-tempered as he usually was during this battle, and the skills he showed in painting a sauce onto the plate with the crab and mango dish brought his more delicate side out for everyone to see. He was so absorbed by his son's finesse that he didn't even notice Ohta approaching him.

"Excuse me, Kratos-san?" Ohta said, microphone at the ready.

"Yes?"

"Could I have a few words from you?"

He frowned. "I don't see why not."

"OK, just a few seconds." He put his hand to his ear, listening for Fukui's signal.

"And Ohta's over in the front row about to get a word with who I believe to be the father of one of the chefs—if you're ready, take it away big fella!"

"OK thank you, I'm here with Mr. Kratos Aurion. You are Lloyd's father, correct?"

"Erm…yes."

"What do you think of the chefs' performance in the battle so far?"

"I'm actually rather surprised. I never thought Lloyd was much of a chef himself, but everything is coming out beautifully on his side. And Colette…well, other than that stumble at the beginning, I thought she would be incredibly clumsy in the kitchen, but I'm surprised she hasn't either fallen or taken out a cameraman yet. And from what I can see, her dishes are coming together quite well."

"Any words of encouragement for them?"

"…Don't lose, Lloyd," Kratos muttered.

"OK thank you, Kratos-san! Back to you, Fukui-san!" Ohta jogged to the other side of Kitchen Stadium, where Colette was hollowing out some mango halves. Kratos eyed the jumbotrons as the cameras caught a glimpse of the mango bowls and, a split second later, some vegetables simmering in a pot.

"What's she planning on doing with those…?" he muttered.

Regal, who had taken the seat next to Kratos after the producers released him following his defeat, heard him and whispered back, "I was wondering the same thing."

"Well, what would you do?" the seraph asked back, a little louder this time.

"I wouldn't use the mangoes as bowls, that's for sure."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"THIRTY MINUTES HAVE ELAPSED," the time call announced. The stadium was soon filled with loud cheers and applause, encouraging both chefs onward in the creation of their dishes. Both sides were working at a feverish pace, knowing that moving too slowly could prove costly in the long run. The whirr of a blender could be heard on Colette's side, catching the commentators' attention.

"What's going on here? It looks like Colette threw some mangoes in the blender?" Fukui asked, a little puzzled.

"It can't be just a plain old mango smoothie, can it?" Zelos inquired in disbelief.

"Fukui-san!"

"You got it?"

"Yes, it is a plain old mango smoothie but at the same time it isn't. Chef Brunel's blender contains—in addition to the mango—crushed ice, mango juice, guava chunks, peach slices and plain yogurt."

"What? Plain yogurt?" Fukui replied.

"Yes, that's right. It appears she'll be serving this as is."

"Well, I suppose it counts as one of her dishes if it'll be by itself…" Hattori added, scratching his head.

"OK, well, in any event, a healthy helping of that going into glasses for the panel—I think it's a little early to be plating that and be done with it, but we'll see what Chef Brunel does with a little less than half the battle left. And look at that huge block of tuna she's got out there!"

This caught the attention of Iron Chef Chen, who was watching at another table some distance from the announcers' booth.

_Such young chefs using such sophisticated ingredients…_ he thought, shaking his head lightly. He squinted at the monitor in front of him, which now showed Colette pan-searing that entire block of fish. The heat treatment gave it a nice, grayish-pink tinge on the surface while still retaining the deep, raw red on the inside—as she cut it open, Chen nodded in approval at the inside.

"They're only kids and they're threatening to take over OUR turf, would you believe that, Michiba-san?"

"Well, you've got to pass the torch along somehow. I, personally, think I'm getting too old for this…now, having said that, the ingredient does not make the chef. Somebody could use the most extravagant ingredients in the world and still fail to impress people. Remember Hattori and the truffle battle?"

Chen nodded, laughing a bit while recalling the legendary smackdown Michiba had laid on the color-commentator several years prior.

"But still, isn't it impressive that they're so young and appear to know the flavors of each so well?"

"Well, I'll give them that much," Michiba replied, leaning back in his chair. "It may look impressive, but how does it taste?"

"Just look at how she's pairing the seared tuna with the salad," Chen pointed out on the monitor. "I would think the sweetness of the mango would pair well with the savory tuna, right?"

"I should hope so as well. But what…what on earth is Lloyd doing? Chen-san, look at this…" the old man asked shockingly, squinting at his monitor which now showed Lloyd removing the lone mango in the oven and stuffing it into a whole duck. Chen leaned over and looked as well, appearing a little confused. "I mean, I've heard of stuffing things into hollow…erm, things, but this…he's gonna ruin the skin if he keeps this up!"

"Relax, Michiba-san," Sakai interjected upon hearing the old man's outburst. "It's not in our place to tell Chef Irving what to do. If he screws up, then the judges will punish him accordingly."

The unmistakable voice of Ohta interrupted the Iron Chefs' thoughts.

"Fukui-san!"

"Whatcha got?"

"This is indeed a duck inside which Chef Irving has stuffed the whole mango that was sitting in the oven since the beginning of the battle, and it appears he plans to pan-fry this and serve it with some vegetables as a garnish."

Ohta's latest report stumped the first Iron Chef Japanese, as the old man in blue slumped back in his chair, wondering if Lloyd actually had something on his hands.

_Maybe he's not as dense as everyone writes him off as…_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

On the kitchen floor, Colette rushed back to her cutting board after throwing some Chinese broccoli, onions, and zucchini into a pot with what appeared to be some kind of a mango stew.

"Oh, Fusako…" she gently called out to one of her assistants, "…would you mind making some crackers to go along with the mango salsa I'm about to make? I think I left that dough by the salamander oven."

"_Hai_, right away," she called back.

The former Chosen then quickly diced some mangoes, cilantro, and red onions, squeezed a little lemon juice over the mixture, and tossed the bowl.

"And, ah, Bomi, where did you put those mango bowls I hollowed our earlier?" she called out as she ran over to the pot with the vegetables.

"They're on the plating area, Colette. Just whenever you're ready with those vegetables, go ahead and drop 'em in the bowls."

"Thank you!" she called back as she stirred the vegetables around some more. Colette put the lid back on the pot and rushed over to the bowl containing her mango salsa, picked it up and whirled around to rush it over to Fusako, who was flattening the dough in preparation for grilling.

That is, until her foot slipped under something that didn't give easily. "Whoooaaaaaaaa! Oh no!" she shouted as the bowl flew into the air, flinging its contents onto the nearby riverbank. The cameraman had forgotten to wrap the cord as he rushed from one side of Colette's kitchen to another, causing Colette's foot to get caught in a stray loop that he was just about to snatch up. The audience gasped as Colette hit the floor.

"Yikes! What happened there? Chef Brunel goes down yet again…" Fukui lamented as the former Chosen got up and dusted herself off. She dashed for the cupboard as she pulled out yet another bowl and continued as if nothing had happened.

"Fukui-san!"

"Yes, Ohta?"

"Chef Brunel got caught by a cameraman's cord that he forgot to coil as he moved from one side of her kitchen to the other, which means that—although she doesn't seem to be physically hurt—she'll have to do her mango salsa all over again, back to you."

"FIFTEEN MINUTES TO GO," the disembodied voice of the clock called.

"Oh no!" Seles moaned.

"Oh no is right," Fukui replied, "and with about a quarter of the battle left, we'll see if Chef Brunel can pick up the pieces on that one."

"Didn't look like it took her that long to make," Zelos deadpanned.

"Well, you never know around here," Hattori retorted, "because who knows, this could've been a blessing in disguise. She might now be able to redo some things she forgot the first time."

"Indeed, maybe a second chance in disguise for Chef Brunel as she runs back to the ingredient stand to get some more mangoes. Meantime, Chef Irving's pulling his mango rice out of the rice cooker—looks like he'll be serving that as-is, no fancy bowl that Colette's pulling on the other side or anything, right?"

"Well, if he made a bowl, I didn't see it," Zelos remarked. "What I do see, though, is something really good—check out that duck he's got on the pan!"

"Man alive!" Fukui exclaimed. "That is looking so delicious right now, a pan-fried duck with a whole baked mango stuffed inside…pretty clear, judging by his face, that this is one dish he doesn't want either of his assistants touching!"

At this the announcers laughed. "Doesn't want his handiwork ruined, I suppose," Seles added.

"Well, he's gone from having no clue what he's doing to having every clue what he's doing, or at least it only looks that way," Fukui added with a chuckle.

"Now what's his assistant got here?" Zelos asked as he examined his monitor. Lloyd's assistant had stuck some small piecrusts with some mango cubes in it into the oven.

"Hmm, a dessert perhaps?" Seles surmised.

"Fukui-san!"

"Whatcha got?"

"Miss Wilder is exactly right—the word is that these will be baked until about the two-minute mark at which point they will add just plain yogurt on top. Oh, and another thing—the mangoes have actually been lightly dusted with cinnamon before going into the oven."

"Ah, okay," Hattori lit up. "A tart, then."

"But just mangoes and yogurt? Wouldn't that be a little plain?" Fukui countered.

"Ah, it might, although the cinnamon might serve some purpose in averting that. It's a technique I'm not familiar with, though, so I'm not sure."

"We've certainly seen stranger things come out of the kitchen around here, though, so we'll have to wait and see lo these next twelve and a half minutes to see what happens. Now, back to the other side, Chef Brunel looks like she has her mango salsa back in action, and that one's going down on the plates now. And did you notice, the ice cream machine's in action?"

"Mango ice cream! I love it already…" Zelos gushed.

"Really?" Seles wondered. "I didn't even see anything on that side indicating that she would make an ice cream…"

"Well, it's only natural, sis, you've got fruits, why not make an ice cream, right? I mean, c'mon, what's one fruit that HASN'T been made into ice cream?"

"Durian," she curtly replied.

Zelos went wide-eyed as Fukui and Hattori both laughed at him. Fukui removed his glasses and wiped his eyes as he made to address the former Chosen's baffled look.

"Hey, you set her up, she just got you good!"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

_Why won't this thing cook faster, doggone it?_ Lloyd thought to himself as he continued to spoon the hot oil over the top of the duck. _And I've still got to add a garnish or two to this…aaaaahhhh, what to do?_

"FIVE MINUTES TO GO," came the time call.

"Yo, Ron!" Lloyd yelled over the crowd noise.

"Sup?"

"Wilt some green onions and puree some mangoes for me, will ya? Make sure you add the mango juice to the puree first—I'll need both later. Doesn't have to be much, just do it so we have something to go with this bird!"

"You got it!" Lloyd's assistant called back as he dashed off to the pantry.

"And Chris, take those tarts out in three, yeah? Have that yogurt ready."

"Yessir!"

Lloyd wiped some sweat from his brow as he spooned the last of the oil over the duck. Satisfied with the browned surface, he removed the bird from the pan and set it on a deep dish.

"No one touch that duck or you're dead!" he warned.

On the other side, Colette had recovered quite nicely from her earlier spill. The salad, smoothie, salsa (with crackers), and mango bowls with vegetables were all plated with about three and a half minutes left in the battle—all that remained was the ice cream that was close to being done.

"Bomi, Fusako, any ideas on what to add to that sorbet?" Colette asked. "I don't think we'll score very many originality points if we serve it as-is."

"Berries in the bottom of the cup, perhaps?" Fusako suggested.

"Strawberries," Bomi added. "Their sourness complements the mango's sweetness."

"All right then, strawberries it is," Colette said as she dashed off to the pantry to fetch the fruit. "Time call, please?" she asked sweetly.

"About two and a half minutes, Colette," Fusako called, checking the clock. The Chosen gleefully picked out a handful of strawberries and set to splitting them for the ice cream, which Bomi was now taking out of the machine.

Back on the other side, Lloyd was frantically plating away—all of his dishes were down and awaiting finishing touches. The red-clad swordsman-turned-chef was frantically running around his kitchen, often thinking while on the run and becoming visibly frustrated.

"ONE MINUTE TO GO," the clock announced. Audience members were chanting for the side they wanted to win and applause soon flooded the stadium. Fukui noted that he couldn't hear anything in his earpiece or what Seles, Zelos, or Hattori were saying.

_Crap! One minute? _Lloyd thought. _Are we gonna make it?_

"Lloyd! The tarts!" Chris called, sliding the baking sheet to the plating area.

"Cool!" Lloyd yelled back. "Ron! The yogurt!" he yelled, and a large bucket of yogurt soon flew through the air and into Lloyd's hands. He hastily grabbed a spoon and smothered each one in white yogurt.

"THIRTY SECONDS TO GO."

Colette, on the other side, was completely finished with time to spare. She poured some leftover mango juice into glasses for her and her assistants, and toasted to the battle.

"FIFTEEN SECONDS TO GO."

"One, two, three, four! Yep! We've got 'em all!" Lloyd shouted triumphantly, scanning the plating area for anything missing.

"TEN SECONDS TO GO." By this point nobody could hear anything over the din of the crowd.

"Onions, mango sauce, down next to the duck…" Lloyd went over in his head. "All right! We're done!"

"FIVE SECONDS."

"The final seconds ticking down…" Fukui narrated as best he could over the crowd.

"THREE."

"TWO."

"ONE."

"And THAT'S IT!" Fukui shouted. "The cooking's done, the Mango Battle is OVAH!"

Lloyd wiped the sweat from his brow, meeting Colette in the center and embracing her. The crowd noise was finally dying down as only applause could be heard.

"Come here…" Lloyd said as he fell into her arms.

"You did great," Colette responded as Lloyd's weight almost knocked her over.

"No, Colette. We did great."

* * *

**Whew! That's the longest battle I've ever written. Tasting and judgment to come, as we decide who our second finalist will be! Who will fight against Presea for the Aselia Cup? Stick around.**

**I'm opening the poll now for the winner of the Sylvarant Semifinal, in case you have a favorite character for the final or if you think you already know whose dishes will taste better. In the meantime, stick around! Ryori no Tetsu-Shinfonia kono ato.**


	9. Eight: Sweet and Sour

**The plates are down, but the real Mango Battle begins in tasting and judgment. We find out what our judges think of our two heroes' creations. Enjoy, and don't forget to vote for the winner on my profile!**

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**Chapter 8: Sweet and Sour**

**==FAHRENHEIT 451== (FUKUI NARRATING)**

Chef Irving is offering four dishes.

First, Crab and Mango Royale. The sweetness of the mangoes matches well with the smooth texture of the crabmeat, coated in Lloyd's special Iselian tartare sauce. The caviar on top adds a nice, salty punch to complete this dish.

Second, Mango Rice. Water infused with the aroma of mango seeds formed the base for this rice dish. The tofu, bok choy, and spinach complement the chunks of mango with a smooth, earthy flavor.

Third, Mango-Stuffed Duck. An original creation of Chef Irving's, one he claims he had no idea he was creating. The whole stuffed mango inside this perfectly cooked duck adds a sweetness to the savory taste of the duck. The green onions and the accompanying mango sauce add a satisfying punch to this delectable dish.

Last is Mango Yogurt Tart. A touch of cinnamon added to the baked mango adds spice that beautifully complements the fluffy crust of the tart and the sourness of the yogurt—a refreshing and sweet close to this course.

Chef Brunel is offering five dishes.

First, Mango Smoothie. A blend of fruits in addition to mangoes add a savory mélange of flavors to begin her courses.

Second, Mango Salsa with Chips. She recovers from a stumble late in the battle nicely with this unique mixture of mangoes, cilantro, and red onions. The crackers subdue the sharp flavors of this otherwise pungent dish.

Third is Stewed Vegetables in Mango Bowls, a creative use of today's theme ingredient. The tasters can enjoy a pungent sweetness of the vegetable mixture contained in this fruit bowl. A sour mango sauce adorns the top to add variety in flavors.

Fourth, Tuna Salad with Mango Dressing. Seared tuna fillets accompany a delightful, savory blend of a fresh salad with creamy avocado and mango cubes. The panel's taste buds will be tantalized by the variety of textures and by the sharp mango-ginger dressing that adds punch to this dish.

Last is Mango Sorbet, a classic dish that only the Chosen of Salvation can make so heavenly. Fresh strawberries garnish this sweet and refreshing finish to this exquisite meal.

**==FIGHTING 17****TH****== (FUKUI NARRATING)**

The second of the semifinal battles in the first-ever Aselia Cup Tournament pits two very familiar faces from the land of Sylvarant against each other in Kitchen Stadium.

And who else to partake in a culinary tournament honoring the World Regeneration party than the leader of the party himself, Iselia's own Lloyd Irving.

Perhaps his interests are conflicted as he goes head-to-head against his childhood friend and former Sylvarant Chosen Colette Brunel.

Chairman Kaga unveils the theme for the Sylvarant Semifinal; symbolic of the reborn Giant Kharlan Tree, a vessel for the seeds it requires to regenerate: mangoes!

Chef Irving, with a come-what-may attitude, offers a delectable set of four dishes.

Chef Brunel, with some missteps along the way, counters with five dishes of her own.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Chef Irving, if you would please," Mr. Matsuo called into the holding room. Lloyd gave Colette's hand one last squeeze before getting up from his seat and entered the dining room. Zelos and Seles were sitting to the Chairman's immediate left at the long table; next to them were Altessa, Chocolat, and George. As Lloyd took his position near the Chairman, his first course, the crab and mango royale, was brought to the table.

"I hear you have a side bet going with Miss Brunel?" Kaga asked jokingly.

"Oh, right, that," Lloyd said chuckling. "Yeah, I put fifty gald down on this. But really, it's a small consequence considering that if one of us wins, we both do. After all, any money we win—if we win any money—will go towards the restaurant, and it's both of ours."

Kaga nodded as he glanced at the plate in front of him. "This is the first course," he announced to the panel, "_dozo._"

Lloyd anxiously watched as the panel took small bites out of his first dish.

_Oh man…if someone had told me that _Iron Chef _was this nerve-racking, I wouldn't have done it in the first place…doesn't help that Zelos is scarfing down everything without a second thought…_

"Mmmm…" Zelos said finally, leaning back in his chair. "That's good, bud. Not too sweet, just a touch of saltiness. Excellent."

"The flavors complement each other so wonderfully," Chocolat gushed. "I've never had anything like this."

"I think, though," George countered, "that this dish is more of a focus on the crab than it is on the mango. Yes, it is just an accessory, but that's all it is. I would've liked to see more of a starring role for the fruit."

Lloyd kept a straight face, but frowned as soon as he broke eye contact with the panel to retrieve his second course.

_And I thought that was going to be my wow factor, too…_

He kept the same emotionless façade as the mango rice was served. Seles was holding her spoon up, still a little puzzled by the dish.

"I mean…it's very good and all, but where's the mango?"

"Right there, sis," Zelos retorted, poking his spoon at various places in Seles' bowl.

"I don't really taste it, though!"

"I disagree…" Altessa cut in. "It's a subtle touch. Give it a few more bites and you'll find it. I personally like it, all the flavors are balanced quite evenly. It's very well thought-out."

Seles only frowned, much to the amusement of the other panel members. Lloyd quietly ducked away to retrieve the duck.

"Oh, I've been anxiously awaiting this one," Kaga remarked with a wide grin.

Lloyd chuckled. "I really had no idea what was going through my head when I was making this. I mean, I had to cook fruit for crying out loud! I still don't understand how cooking fruits make it taste even better…"

"Well, it's simple, really," George responded. "The extreme heat caramelizes the sugars—"

"Oh, quit yer yammerin', we don't wanna hear it," Zelos interrupted as he took a long swig from his wine glass. Lloyd was dividing the mango duck amongst the panel, dropping a long green onion drenched in his special mango sauce on top of each serving. Zelos all but grabbed the plate out of Lloyd's hands and quickly cut himself a bite, much to the astonishment of the Chairman.

_I've just about had it with this one…remind me never to invite him back as a judge again. Or if I am mad enough to do so again, don't serve him wine…_

"Yah, this is good," Zelos loudly proclaimed. "Best one I've had today."

"Care to elaborate on that, Mr. Wilder?" the Chairman challenged.

"Oh, no, I couldn't do it justice. Whaddya think, sis?" he said, poking Seles in the side.

"Um, well…" she coughed, paying her rambunctious brother no attention, "…it's a very elegant presentation, and the sweetness of the mango goes very well with the savory duck. A very sophisticated dish—I'm actually quite surprised it came from you, Lloyd."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Lloyd shouted as the panel laughed. Kaga waved it off, thanking him for the excellent dish and urged him to serve his last course.

"A few nights before his battle against Iron Chef Sakai, my friend Genis prepared this dish," Lloyd explained as the mango yogurt tart was brought to the table. "So I took his recipe and added my own little spin to it—whereas he served his raw, I baked mine for a little while and added cinnamon."

"I'm not sure I like the yogurt here," Altessa remarked as he put his spoon down. "It would've been so nice if the yogurt wasn't there—maybe a kind of gelatin instead?"

"I don't know, I kinda like the yogurt, it matches well with the mango," Chocolat countered. "Although one thing's for sure, the cinnamon's to die for. And the texture…Martel, this is so good!"

"Seconded," Seles added. "You've got quite the diversity of flavors—sweet, sour, and spicy—it all comes together beautifully. Nicely done."

"Thank you, Chef Irving," Kaga said, extending a hand.

"Oh! It—it was my pleasure, Kaga-san. Thank you all very much," Lloyd said in a hurry before he disappeared into the holding room. He heaved a big sigh of relief as he collapsed into the chair.

"Man! I thought I was gonna pass out there!"

"Were you nervous?" Colette asked sweetly.

"Are you kidding me? Of course I was! Not since we battled Mithos for the last time have I ever been so nervous."

Colette clutched his hand and giggled. "I'm sure you did fine."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

In a dark corner of Altamira's Kyo-no Hanten, a television set flickered in the back of the kitchen, tuned to the _Iron Chef Symphonia._

"All right, and now, the dishes of Chef Colette Brunel," a voice narrated.

Nearby, the head chef was pacing back and forth from stovetop to countertop as he fumed.

"How did I not get invited to this tournament…I _am_ the best chef in Aselia…I should be one of the Iron Chefs myself, not that little Sage runt…"

He could make out voices from the television set praising the latest dish to reach their discerning tongues, a mango smoothie, as "quite refreshing and wonderful."

"FOOLS!" the man finally snapped. "They invite a chef who offers these judges a SMOOTHIE?" He pounded a fist onto the counter. "Anybody can do that!"

The man continued watching the show, eyeing the newest dishes to arrive at the table—a kind of mango salsa with homemade chips, which was hailed as "the root of all culinary soul."

_They don't know the first thing they're talking about. 'The root of all culinary soul,' if that is what they wish to discuss, begins with the ingredient itself…the chef then makes it into what he desires…_

He pounded the counter and furiously switched the television set off, storming out of the kitchen.

_I will be the one to bring the Gourmet Academy to its knees! I must set this plan into motion…now!_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"…oh, and please scoop some of the mango from the bowl and eat it along with the vegetables," Colette pressed sweetly. She folded her hands at her waist, wondering how the panel would respond to her latest dish.

"I think you could've incorporated the mango into this dish a little bit better," George began. "The vegetables themselves are well cooked, but the mango just isn't there unless you count presentation. It's not the centerpiece, it's an accessory."

"I disagree, I think the mango's just fine where it is," Chocolat countered. "It's refreshing not to have a dish where we're overloaded on mango flavor. It's a nice break from these crazily sweet dishes."

"But would this qualify as a mango dish if you take away the 'plate'?" Seles asked back. "I don't think so."

"What, sis, you don't taste the sourness in the vegetables? I think that comes from the mango water she boiled them in, don't you think?"

"Hrm…" Seles grumbled. Colette lightly giggled as her next course came to the table.

"The main?" Kaga asked.

"Of course. I hope you'll enjoy the diversity of flavors and textures in this dynamic salad. It's one of my favorite dishes to make, except I usually use peaches instead of mangoes."

"I think you've done this well," Altessa responded. "The tuna and the avocado aren't overpowering to the mango essence. Very nicely done."

"I agree, I think this is your best one yet," Seles added.

"Mmm, I'd pay to eat this. Delish," Zelos called loudly. Seles rolled her eyes.

"Zelos, you'd pay to eat anything…" The panel laughed at this, leading Colette to fetch her final course, the mango sorbet.

"I figured you can't go wrong with a fruit sorbet of any kind, so that's why I'm closing with one. Strawberries to garnish, because I like having two kinds of fruit in my sorbets."

"And the flavors complement each other very well," Chocolat responded.

"It's definitely a refreshing close to the meal," Altessa added. "Of course, maybe I just have a soft spot for ice creams, particularly sorbets…"

"I dunno, I don't think it's all that original—I mean, anyone could make a mango sorbet…" Zelos added.

"Except you," Seles countered, causing the panel to laugh at the former Chosen's expense.

"But could you put Colette's heavenly touch to it?" Chocolat retorted. "It's not overly sweet, the texture is very smooth, and it's very well-made."

Colette bowed and made for the holding room as Kaga began to discuss the verdict with the panelists. When she entered, Mr. Matsuo handed her a sheet of paper.

"We forgot to do this with Miss Presea, but would you please write the name of the Iron Chef you wish to challenge should you win the tournament?"

"Certainly," she responded, taking the paper. She saw Lloyd write some delicate kanji on his sheet before handing it back to Mr. Matsuo. He flashed her a dumb grin, almost as if to say, "What are you looking at?"

"Soooooo…?" she asked sweetly. "Who did you choose?"

"Like I'd tell you that!" he shouted back. "OK, OK, if you really must know…" Lloyd leaned over and whispered in her ear, after which she giggled.

"Haha…you would, only because of that," she said, jokingly punching him. "I think I know who I'll challenge now…"

She pulled out her brush and wrote down the name.

"Thank you, I'll let the Iron Chefs know," Mr. Matsuo said, taking the paper and leaving the holding room.

"So how'd it go for you?" Lloyd asked.

"Oh, I think they really liked what I had to offer! I think you're in trouble, Lloyd!" Colette teased, sticking out her tongue.

"We'll let the judges decide that!"

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**Sorry I've been away for so long…life gets in the way sometimes. The finals are coming-it's Presea vs. the winner of this battle! And what does this mysterious man have in store for this tournament? Stay tuned!**


	10. Nine: The Road to the Final

**The stage will be set for the Aselia Cup Final in about the next 2,000 words or so…who goes on? And what's with that spooky guy that came up in the last chapter? All will be revealed as I bring you the next chapter in **_**Iron Chef Symphonia: Aselia Cup**_**!**

**Author's note: This contains some pretty major character spoilers if you haven't completed most of the game. You have been warned.**

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**Chapter 9: The Road to the Final**

The production staff hurried backstage as Mr. Matsuo laid the forms that the chefs filled out on the table.

"Have the votes from the recent battle come in yet?" he asked a producer who was tallying the score.

"They're in, I'm still figuring the total points. It's another one of those 3-2 decisions, and I want to make sure the points are right…"

"Take your time, but we need to let the Iron Chefs know as soon as possible who the winner is. They need to know who might be chosen in battle after the final." Mr. Matsuo nodded and sat down at the nearby table to look over the paperwork Lloyd and Colette just gave him.

_ Lloyd wants to challenge Sakai, and Colette wants to battle Kobe…hmm. And now Presea wants to challenge Chen, so I guess we'll have to let Chen and—_

"Matsuo-san!" the producer called, waving the scorebook in the air. "We're all set. We just need you to check and make sure."

Mr. Matsuo opened the book and glanced at the scores before signing the bottom of the page and putting it into his pocket.

_OK then, we'll page…_

"Thank you, Nagano-san, I'll run this to the Chairman."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Chairman Kaga escorted the panel to his familiar position nearby the ingredient stand, scorebook in hand. Applause resonated throughout the stadium, which was now turning dark not only with the passage of time but with impending gray cloud cover. Kaga silenced the crowd as he held up his finger.

"These two faces are arguably the most famous ones from the World Regeneration group," he began. "As they battled here in Kitchen Stadium today, I could not help but wonder at the cause they chose to fight for—the preservation of peace in this world that they fought to protect. And, I feel, they have taken many steps in fulfilling this cause."

Both Lloyd and Colette, now back on the kitchen floor, stared at each other for a brief moment. Lloyd winked at Colette, then glanced back at Kaga with a look of resolution in his eyes. As he flicked his gaze back to the Chairman, the twin swordsman thought he caught a glimpse of a familiar, auburn-haired face in the crowd sitting next to Regal.

_Kra—Dad? What the hell…?_

"Although we promote peace with these matches, there can only be one winner," Kaga continued. "Only one more ticket to the final."

Lloyd paid him no mind as he continued to stare dumbly at the one who appeared to be his seraph father, slightly amused and yet greatly surprised by his presence. The Chairman paused and inhaled deeply before delivering his fateful words:

"OK, here's the verdict."

**==TIME LAPSE==**

"What an exciting battle, the Sylvarant Semifinal with arguably the most recognizable faces from the World Regeneration group—Lloyd Irving of Iselia, the acknowledged leader of the pack; versus Colette Brunel, the Sylvarant Chosen of Mana," Fukui narrated over the tense music. "The winner faces Presea in the Aselia Cup Final, and the loser goes home…who takes it? Whose cuisine reigns supreme?"

Kaga opened the book to the marked page and frowned.

"The five tasters scored as follows:

"George Edmonds: 16-14, Colette Brunel."

_Was I really that bad? _Lloyd thought amidst the applause. He glanced over at Colette, who was smiling at the prospect of stealing one vote.

"Altessa Bernhardt: 18-17, Colette Brunel."

_Oh crap, one more vote and she's won…_ Lloyd thought. Colette was grinning from ear to ear.

"Chocolat Renard: 19-17, Lloyd Irving."

Colette's grin shortened a bit as Lloyd smirked.

_It may very well come down to a 3-2 decision,_ Colette thought.

"Seles Wilder: 20-19, Lloyd Irving."

_Huh?_ Lloyd thought. _She wasn't all that receptive to my dishes…_

_So it will come down to the last vote…_

"And Zelos Wilder…" Kaga paused to let the crowd settle down. The two chefs looked on longingly, nearly begging him to quit killing them with the suspense.

"…20-19, Lloyd Irving!"

The swordsman's eyes bolted wide open.

_I…I—I won? And Zelos didn't vote for the girl? Is this world coming to an end?_

"That means the winner is…LLOYD IRVING!"

"It's Chef Irving! The twin swordsman does it!" Fukui shouted. "Lloyd Irving has won the Sylvarant Semifinal and will advance to the Aselia Cup Final Battle in one of the closest battles we've ever seen here in Kitchen Stadium! HE is the one who will face Presea Combatir in the final match of the Aselia Cup Tournament!"

Lloyd met Colette at the center of the stadium and squeezed her into a tight embrace, tears beginning to well up in his eyes.

"I—why—how—what the hell just happened?" he stammered as they both laughed. "I thought…you definitely…had that battle all l-l-l-locked u-u-up…"

Colette only smiled sweetly and flicked away a tear from Lloyd's cheek. She pointed over to the crowd where Genis and Raine were sitting, pointing out an auburn-haired man clad in purple. He was applauding with a rather emotionless face, though upon closer inspection his mouth was slightly bent into a grin. This confirmed Lloyd's suspicions, as the twin swordsman completely dropped Colette's hands and walked, completely ignoring the cameramen's demands to return to his position, towards Kratos Aurion.

"Congratulations," the man said in a low, but surprisingly not cold, voice.

"Krat—Dad? What are you—"

"I have felt much less of a father to you especially after our…ahem, disagreements, so I felt I had to do at least this much to make it up to you."

"But how did you hear—"

"The Chairman has his connections. Now shut up and give me a hug, my son."

The swordsman just stood there, dumbstruck, with all the cameras, eyes, and lights in the stadium on him and his father, who was now holding out his arms. He felt himself walking slowly towards the seraph, and the applause rose in a violent crescendo as the two locked in an embrace.

"If that doesn't move you, you've lost all feeling," Fukui remarked over the crowd, just in time for a crash of thunder to ring out over the outdoor Kitchen Stadium.

"Damn," Mr. Matsuo cursed under his breath. "Once the cameras are off," he whispered to Nagano, "make the announcement that taping has been suspended until tomorrow morning, at which time we will tape the final battles. I don't want the tasters to eat rain-drenched food."

Rain suddenly began to fall as the director cut off the cameras, and Nagano made for the microphone to alert the audience. Mr. Matsuo gestured to Lloyd and Presea to join him backstage, and the Iron Chefs followed him to collect their belongings. Before he disappeared from the stage, Kaga took one more longing look at the outdoor stadium, now being sprinkled with the latest rain.

_So far…this tournament has been a success._

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"We'll have to tape the finals tomorrow, or whenever the weather lets up," Mr. Matsuo said to Lloyd and Presea. "We will be in contact with you if our plans change, but for now please be prepared to arrive here tomorrow morning at 9. We will begin taping promptly at 10." Without another word, Mr. Matsuo left after handing the two chefs their competitor passes.

Lloyd blinked. "He seemed to be in a bit of a hurry, don't you think?"

"Perhaps he didn't want to get wet on the way back home? I suggest we do the same, seeing as the heavy rain might come any minute…"

"I wonder where the rest of the group is…"

_And more importantly, I wonder what the theme ingredient will be tomorrow…I certainly don't want to scramble as much as I did today…_ Lloyd thought.

They caught up with Regal and Colette at the backstage entrance, and then met up with the rest of the group—Kratos included—near the entrance to Meltokio after sprinting the last half of the way there. The rain began to dump buckets onto the World Regeneration party just before they found their way back to Zelos's mansion, where they had planned to stay after the tournament was over.

"Man…I'm beat," Lloyd said, collapsing onto a couch.

"You fought hard, my son. I…I'm proud of you," Kratos mumbled, sitting near Lloyd's head. The twin swordsman said nothing, gazing wide-eyed at the ceiling. Snapping him out of his reverie was Colette, who jokingly threw a bag of coins at him.

"You won it, fair and square," she winked as she disappeared into the bedroom.

Lloyd opened the bag and rolled his eyes before falling back asleep.

_You just _had _to give me fifty 1-gald coins, didn't you…?_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

He lurked in the backstage shadows of Kitchen Stadium, waiting. This was his only chance to get his name out again, to burn it in Chairman Kaga's mind that he was a force to be reckoned with.

_How dare he not invite me to the most prestigious culinary tournament of all…_

There was one of his targets—an old man in red, walking down the corridor towards the exit. Now was his chance. He leapt from the shadows, covering the old man's mouth as he struggled to break free from his kidnapper's grasp. No such luck—the perpetrator taped his mouth shut, tied his hands behind his back, and found a suitable hiding place for his victim. "IRON CHEFS ONLY," the placard on the door read. It was the holding room by the elevator platforms. He untied the man's hands.

"Punch in the code," he hissed. The old man refused, leading his kidnapper to extract a small knife from his pocket and slightly dig it into the back of his neck.

"I said, _punch in the code_," he hissed again.

The old man hesitated before tapping four buttons on the door handle—three, one, four, two. The door swung open, and the kidnapper re-secured his victim's hands as he tossed the man into an elevator stall.

_I'll be back for you later,_ he thought as he set out for his next target.

He found his second target, the younger man in yellow, conversing amongst the old man in blue and the kid draped in the Italian flag.

_You're mine now, _he thought. _You call yourselves the Iron Chefs…hah, what a joke._

The men parted ways, and luckily for him the man in yellow walked right past him. The kidnapper waited until he was out of earshot of the others, then pounced. Far too easy to nab—even easier than the old man, which was unusual. He went straight to the holding room, and punched in the code that he remembered. Three, one, four, two. He deposited the man in a nearby chair, and tied him to it. He took another chair and tied the other man to it, then tied both men back-to-back against each other.

_I shall be the ultimate test for the victor! I am the one worthy of the title of Iron Chef! These kids don't stand a chance against me!_

Satisfied with his handiwork, he left the two men in a corner of the room and departed the premises.

_Forget what Kaga says…_this_ is a match you do not want to miss!_

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**Uh-oh, I smell trouble…but the kidnapper is right, this is a match you don't want to miss! Iron Chef Symphonia continues with the Aselia Cup Final and the bonus grand finale! Stay tuned!**


	11. Ten: Internalized Battle Plans

**And now, for something that may not make any sense: the internalized thoughts of Lloyd and Presea the night before the final battle. Imagine this as a kind of confession booth before the battle. I don't know where I got this idea from, but I hope it works.**

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**Chapter 10: Internal Battle Plans**

**-Presea-**

_ It seems so surreal…one moment I am working in my humble restaurant, the next I have advanced to the finals on the _Iron Chef Symphonia._ Funny how the world works, isn't it? It's like me, having lost sixteen years of my life—one moment I'm doing something, the next I'm saving the world, and I don't remember anything in between._

_ Even though I'm not concerned about it so much, winning would be nice. The quarter of a million gald will mean so much to the reconstruction of Ozette. While most of the town has returned to normal, even after three years, there are still many things that need repairing, and our local infrastructure could use all the support it can get. I, for one, am grateful that Sheena and the village of Mizuho have offered to help in the last year or so, but I do not wish to impose this burden on them any longer. It is about time the citizens of Ozette picked up the pieces independently._

_ But I repeat—I am looking to represent the rebirth of Ozette, not to ask for Aselia's pity anymore. I want to show the world that Ozette has returned in a big way, and I hope the aftermath of my appearances on the _Iron Chef Symphonia _will benefit the town in some way. Even if I do not win, I hope to take solace in the fact that I have represented my hometown well._

_ To tell the truth, I don't really know what to make of battling Lloyd in the final. Yes, he is someone I've looked up to as a friend and a leader (even if he is a little slow), and he is someone who does not go down easily. I must admit, I have a hard time imagining him as a chef, though perhaps this is a result of not keeping in touch since the group started on their own paths. I don't know his strengths, I don't know his weaknesses, and I'm not going to try and plan around them depending on what the theme ingredient is._

_ The theme itself? Well, I'm personally hoping for a vegetable or a fruit, something I can carve. I worked well with seafood before, but I really don't think they'll give us another seafood theme. I honestly don't know what I would do if meat were the ingredient—I don't like working with it, honestly. But yeah, maybe apples or carrots would be best for me._

_ As long as my friends and supporters are there watching me, I'll do my best._

**-Lloyd—**

_Somebody explain what just happened to me. Between the battle, the result, Dad showing up…my head is a giant whirlwind right now. And I was one of the people who saved the world, too…we've done harder things than this, why am I so nervous?_

_ It's Presea I'm going up against in the final. Really, that might help unnerve me. Going against Colette really was hard for me emotionally—I wanted to win, but I really wanted Colette to win as well. I suppose it would've been the same way if I had gone against Genis or Sheena. What can I say, I'm a sap, I let my emotions get in the way of my thinking. But if it worked to help save the world, then I'm all for it._

_ My point here is that because I don't have that much of an emotional connection to Presea, I might do better in the battle simply because I won't feel guilty if I win afterwards. Sounds terrible of me, I know. But maybe I can learn something from her cooking? At least, I think that would be what the Professor would want me to say._

_ Ingredient? Uhhhmmm…well, I don't really know what my strengths and weaknesses in the kitchen are. I'm still trying to figure out who I am as a chef, so I guess this whole process has been a learning experience for me. The fruit theme last time—it was good for me, but I didn't feel like I was doing my full potential with it. Now, the duck dish I made? OK, yeah, then I felt like I was going all out. So I guess I'm hoping for a meat theme ingredient? I just don't think vegetables are exciting enough for a grand final, and they wouldn't give us two fruit themes in a row. Seafood, I guess would be okay, but I won't be thrilled about it—especially if it's alive._

_ I really take Kaga's message to heart, simply because we've fought so hard to make this world what it is today. And I think he's doing something really nice, because it's something all people can connect with. I really hope that this will begin a new chapter in the world where the only fights are over how bad the Professor's cooking is._

_

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_

**This was intentionally short. I'll have the final written…sooner rather than later, I hope.**


	12. Eleven: The Stage is Set

**The buildup to the Aselia Cup Tournament Final is here! It's Lloyd vs. Presea in an epic confrontation to decide who will take it all! Enjoy!**

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**Chapter 11: The Stage is Set**

The outdoor Kitchen Stadium was buzzing with excitement on the night of the final battle of the Aselia Cup Tournament. The sun was setting behind the Grand Tethe'alla Bridge, and the river glistened in a golden reflection. Birds flew overhead, chirping the signal of a rebirth the rain from the other day brought.

While Lloyd and Presea were backstage preparing for the final battle, Sheena, Zelos, Colette, Regal, and Kratos settled into their front-row seats in the Royal Box. Genis and Raine joined Fukui and Hattori in the announcer's booth, having been chosen as the guest judges for the day. The Iron Chefs, minus the two that were challenged by the finalists, filed into the Royal Box next to the World Regeneration group with a look of excitement in their eyes. Morimoto, in particular, eagerly chatted with Michiba about what to expect from an _Iron Chef_ tournament final—to which the elder Iron Chef deadpanned, "an hour of cooking."

"_Onee-chan_," Colette squeaked to Sheena as the crowd was filing into their seats, "who do you think will win today?"

The kunoichi frowned. "Honestly, it's a tough call. I suppose it all depends on the ingredient, but I think right now, not knowing what it is, it's difficult to say. Now, who am I hoping will win? Lloyd, of course."

"I hope he wins too…" the blonde Chosen sighed. She stared off into the distance, eyeing her portrait amongst those of the other competitors.

"He looks so…fierce up there," she mumbled, giggling to herself.

"Don't be silly, Colette, even you know he was as goofy as hell up there," Kratos chided, remembering the opening ceremonies he spied on from Derris-Kharlan. The blonde Chosen jumped out of her seat.

"Besides," the seraph continued, "I don't TRULY believe he knew what he was doing against you out there. It seems like he threw together a bunch of different ingredients and just hoped to Martel everything worked—and, as luck would have it, it did."

"That's not what he does at the restaurant…" Colette replied, a little confused. "Have you been there yet, Kratos?"

"Well…no," he stammered, "but I suppose after what happened today I'll have to. Of course, I'm willing to give him a chance today, as I think different ingredients tend to sway one's mannerisms, but you never know."

"You definitely should come when you have the chance," Colette replied sweetly. "Some of Lloyd's creations are among the most popular items on the menu."

_I suppose I'll have to go after the tournament…it appears it's doing well, but I'll be the judge of that, _he thought. The seraph glanced at the other Iron Chefs sitting right next to him, wondering if they ever got tired of being forced to watch these tournaments simply because they were Iron Chefs.

_Wait a minute, why are two of them missing…?_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Backstage at the elevator platforms, Lloyd stood with his eyes closed, almost meditative in state. In just a matter of minutes, the very section of floor he was standing on would lift him into Kitchen Stadium Symphonia, into the heat of battle for the ultimate honor. The pressure was beginning to mount, and Lloyd needed a break from it all.

"Ninety seconds to show, Mr. Irving," a producer called.

"Thank you," Lloyd called back, not moving an inch. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves.

_Finals…mystery theme ingredient…Dad in the audience…I did this before, I can do it again, right? Dammit, finals, forgot that part…this one's for all the marbles…oh, Martel, help me…_

He wanted to scream, and was about to if it weren't for a certain pink-haired woodcutter tapping him on the shoulder.

"Lloyd…are you OK?"

"Hm? Ah, yeah, yeah, I'm fine, Presea, just, ah…a little nervous, that's all."

She cocked an eyebrow at him as she crossed over to her platform. "You? Nervous? I find that hard to believe…"

"Hey, even the Iron Chefs themselves get nervous, it's nothing new!" Lloyd shot back defensively. He shook his shoulders a bit in an attempt to loosen up, though he quickly tensed back up again as he heard the thirty-second warning.

"Look," Presea called out, "let's just have fun, yeah?"

The twin swordsman flashed a grin and winked.

"You're right, let's make Aselia hungry!"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

_IRON CHEF SYMPHONIA_

_ASELIA CUP FINAL INTRODUCTION_

_**==ETERNAL OATH==**_

_ If memory serves me right, today, the final battle of the Aselia Cup Tournament will take place._

_ It is a fitting way to commemorate the three-year anniversary of the completion of the World Regeneration Quest, as it is my hope that this tournament will promote peace through the simple act of sharing food with one another._

_ Last week*, the preliminary battles were fought amongst four of the Heroes of Regeneration, with very close decisions deciding both matches. And, of course, the winner of the final will not only receive a quarter of a million gald, but also battle the Iron Chef of his or her choosing. Should the champion win that battle as well, I shall graciously appoint him or her Iron Chef._

_**==FIGHTING THE SPIRIT==**_

_ Allow me to introduce the winners of the preliminary battles: first, the carving artist of Ozette, proclaiming a rebirth of her hometown: Presea Combatir._

_ And second, of course, is the Eternal Swordsman himself, the pride of Iselia: Lloyd Irving._

_ Though the two finalists have never been involved in an _Iron Chef _battle before this tournament, our records show that they were in attendance for both of Iron Chef Genis Sage's battles. Chef Sage speaks very highly of both of them._

_Genis: "It'll be a great final. No doubt about that. Presea's carvings are works of art. She's so focused that it actually scares me. And Lloyd is so whimsical in the kitchen that it's entertaining to watch. It'll be worth the price of admission and then some."_

_ The focused vanguard of Ozettian tradition against the unpredictable Iselian leader…this is a battle you do not want to miss!_

_**==SHOW ME YOUR FIRETRUCK==**_

_ So now, my two finalists! Use all the skills you have acquired and hold nothing back to impress Aselia in this final battle!_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"The Aselia Cup Tournament Final," Fukui boomed over the applauding crowd. "Iron Chef fans from all over Aselia have flocked to the outdoor Kitchen Stadium to watch this historic battle about to transpire here. The winners of the semifinal matches, Presea Combatir and Lloyd Irving, will cross knives in this epic confrontation to decide the best chef in all of Aselia. And with that, let's bring on Chairman Kaga!"

The crowd roared with applause as Kaga emerged from backstage and took his familiar place behind the ingredient stand. He silenced them with a flip of his cape.

"If memory serves me right, three years ago, a group of brave warriors regenerated the world of Aselia, ending the struggle for mana between what was once two worlds and bringing peace to what is now one. I am honored to have them all here today in Kitchen Stadium as my distinguished guests."

At this Kaga gestured to the Royal Box that held the World Regeneration group, and the crowd applauded as they stood.

"Two of them happen to be the contenders for the final battle in this tournament I have established in their honor," Kaga continued. "So now, I call upon the finalists of the Aselia Cup Tournament!"

**==SOSHITE BOKU NI DEKIRU KOTO (HEROIC)==**

As smoke billowed from the dais, the elevator platforms began to rise, lifting Lloyd and Presea into Kitchen Stadium to a wildly applauding audience. The two could barely hear their names in time to wave to the crowd because it was so loud, but the music stopping cued them to descend into Kitchen Stadium. They were greeted by the Chairman and Iron Chef Michiba, who held a block containing two sticks.

"Please, choose," the Chairman gestured to Presea. Confused, the little woodcutter pulled out a stick. A large number "1" was imprinted on the end.

"I assume this means that my dishes will be tasted first?" she inquired. The Chairman simply nodded, and directed her to the left side of the stadium. She shook Lloyd's hand before descending the stairs.

"And with the two chefs in their positions, we'll now go back to the Chairman for the unveiling of today's theme ingredient," Fukui announced.

"I didn't think twice about deciding the theme ingredient for the final battle," the Chairman began. "We have used this for many special occasions in Kitchen Stadium Japan, and it is only fitting that I bring it for the grandest occasion in Kitchen Stadium Symphonia. They were flown in from my Japanese headquarters this morning—fifty of them. In total, they're worth about a hundred thousand gald. And now, I will announce it! The theme for the Aselia Cup Final Battle…is THIS!"

Kaga ripped the red tablecloth off the ingredient stand, releasing a cloud of dry ice. The platform rose to lift a basket containing numerous live, big-tailed crustaceans that were struggling to escape. Presea and Lloyd went bug-eyed upon realizing what these creatures actually were.

"The theme for the Aselia Cup Final is…JAPANESE LOBSTER!"

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***Author's Note:**

**Kaga saying "last week" is a way of accounting for TV time versus real time. In reality, programs like Iron Chef would be taped weeks (or even months) before they are scheduled to air. This is common practice for taped TV shows.**

**Oh, snap (goes the lobster claw). This oughta be a goody. How will two Aselians handle an explicitly stated Japanese ingredient? The battle will rage on…in the next chapter! Ryori no Tetsu-Shinfonia kono ato!**


	13. Twelve: Ise Ebi Confront

**We've had a long run-up to this…the Aselia Cup Tournament Final! And remember, the winner goes on to a bonus grand finale of the tournament. Whose cuisine reigns supreme? We'll find out in the next couple of chapters or so…enjoy!**

**Special thanks go to Cwister and Moonlight M3lody for the healthy heaping of reviews they've given me. They're my equivalent of Asako Kishi and Shinichiro Kurimoto from the original program—which reminds me, I've yet to incorporate any judges from the original show. Hmm…for next story if I ever get around to it…**

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**Chapter 12: Ise-Ebi Confront**

**==OVERTURE: NOBUNAGA'S AMBITION==**

_ If memory serves me right, we are about to witness the final battle of the Aselia Cup Tournament, where Lloyd and Presea will fight for the crown!_

_Presea: "__To tell the truth, I don't really know what to make of battling Lloyd in the final. Yes, he is someone I've looked up to as a friend and a leader (even if he is a little slow), and he is someone who does not go down easily."_

_Lloyd: "Uhhhmmm…well, I don't really know what my strengths and weaknesses in the kitchen are. I'm still trying to figure out who I am as a chef, so I guess this whole process has been a learning experience for me."_

**ASELIA CUP TOURNAMENT**

**FINAL**

**==YOU GO, WE GO==**

テセアラ }K{ シルヴァラント

アセーリア ケッショ

プレセア・コンバティール VS ロイド・アーヴィング

ISE-EBI CONFRONT

"Chairman Kaga's dream about to be realized as we are about to witness the ultimate showdown in the world of Symphonian cuisine: the Aselia Cup Tournament Final Battle. A crowd of about five thousand _Iron Chef_ enthusiasts and fans of the World Regeneration group have gathered to witness the final clash between Presea Combatir, the evangelist of Ozette's rebirth, and Lloyd Irving, the Iselian grand general. They'll fight it with the granddaddy of all seafood ingredients, Japanese lobster—the pressure is mounting, the tension is high…what a run-up to this epic confrontation, the Super Bowl of Kitchen Stadium! Let's get it on!"

Kaga glanced at each chef for a brief moment, letting a deafening silence hang over the stadium after Fukui finished his commentary. A grin began to crack the otherwise stern façade of his countenance before the floodgates finally burst open and he boomed forth the familiar call to battle:

"ALLEZ CUISINE!"

"YES!" Fukui shouted, bouncing out of his seat. "There's the opening gong, and the Aselia Cup Final is finally underway! Both chefs, with some spring in their step, make their way up to the ingredient stand to get their hands on their share of Japanese lobsters—Ise-ebi—that the Chairman flew in from Japan earlier today…"

Lloyd and Presea wasted no time in reaching their hands into the tank that contained the fifty lobsters, despite the fact that they could barely hear themselves over the raucous applause that accompanied the opening gong. Fukui, too, made note of the noise level.

"Even though we're outdoors, we've got a much bigger crowd and they're making a ton of noise! I can barely hear anything in my earphones…Hattori? Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, I can hear you," the culinary expert replied.

"It's unbelievable here!"

"Yeah, I don't think we've ever had a crowd that was this loud before, indoors or out."

"Well, in any event, we'll try our best to do what we can, and now we see Chef Combatir is the first to return to her kitchen, lobsters in tow—nice sidestep there—" Fukui noted as Presea dodged a pantry-bound Yuko, "and she's not dealing with the lobsters just yet, but it appears she's set up her carving counter and will start with that."

"Yuko!" she called. "I need two lobsters, chopped! Throw 'em into a pot with the stuff I set over there!"

"You got it!"

"And Ralph, get that rice cooker going, yeah? I need sushi rice seasoning as well, please."

"_Hai!_"

"Meantime, Chef Irving _is_ dealing with the lobsters first, but what's this he's got here?" Fukui inquired as Lloyd proceeded to dunk live lobsters into a big barrel containing a clear liquid.

"Fukui-san!"

"Floor reporter Shinichiro Ohta, go!"

"It appears Chef Irving is dropping whole lobsters into a giant sake barrel, but we have yet to see what he's going to do with them after that. And if I may add one more thing, I asked Chef Irving about what he thinks about competing in an Iron Chef tournament final and he replied, 'At this rate I don't know what's harder: coming up with four dishes in an hour or saving the world!' Back to you."

"Thanks big fella, the word on the floor is that Lloyd already appears to be stressing in these first few minutes of the battle. Seems to be taking it out on those lobsters, though; he's skewering some tails as we speak, though we have yet to see what he's going to do with them. And at this point, let's introduce our distinguished guests for this momentous occasion here in Kitchen Stadium: first, Chair of the Ancient History Department at Sybak Academy, Professor Raine Sage. Pleasure to have you here."

"Thank you, Fukui-san, it's an honor."

"Professor, you ever enjoy lobster much?"

"It's a delicacy, no doubt. I haven't had it very much, but supposedly it was a centerpiece of banquets that were held at the Temple of Water as tribute to Undine. Now, Japanese lobsters may be another matter entirely, but that's what I know."

Fukui furrowed his brow, sensing a precursor to Raine's infamous "ruin mode". "OK, well, nonetheless we hope you enjoy today's battle. And next to her is her brother, our very own Iron Chef Sylvaranti, Genis Sage."

"Hi, pleasure to be here."

"How about it, Genis, Ise lobster is the theme today. What do you think?"

"I think it's a great theme," the young mage replied enthusiastically. "Even though we ourselves never used lobster during the course of our journey, I think a lot of the dishes that involved the different kinds of seafood we used—crab and shrimp, for example—can be adapted for lobster. So I'm really looking forward to what they're going to come up with today."

"Great, hope you enjoy the creations that come out of this grand final. And as always, our commentator, Dr. Yukio Hattori. Doc?"

"Always a pleasure."

"And we heard a little while ago from Ohta that Lloyd seems a little stressed in the early goings of this battle—what do you think, Genis, is this normal for him?"

"This is always what happens when he goes in without thinking about things. Of course it's normal!"

This elicited some laughter from the audience, and from Raine especially.

"OK, well, we remember the last battle he fought, he said he had no idea what he was doing, but I suppose he might have without knowing it considering he won. Now, back to the action on the floor, what's this Presea has going on here?"

The little woodcutter had begun carving radishes and apples into flowers while her assistants were splitting lobster tails.

"Oh yeah, she's really good at this," Genis gushed. "She always has some kind of very artistic garnish of some kind—as you saw in the last battle—and I always feel like it's criminal to eat them given how good they look."  
"Does she favor one kind of food to carve over another?" Hattori asked the young Iron Chef.

"She always likes apples, and really, any kind of vegetable she can get her hands on. I haven't seen her work with radishes that much but it'll turn out to be good, mark my words."

"Well, you've got to win over the judges somehow with artistic ability, and Chef Combatir is really putting the squeeze on Chef Irving in that department."

"Now check out this pot that Chef Combatir is stirring on her side," Hattori interjected. "I'm guessing this could be some kind of a soup?"

"Well, I wish we knew what was in it…" Fukui lamented.

"Looks to me like it's going to be a bisque of some sort? I saw butter and heavy cream go in there earlier…" Genis offered.

"Fukui-san!"

"You got it?"

"Iron Chef Sage is exactly right—in this pot Chef Combatir has combined butter, heavy cream, olive oil, chopped lobsters, leeks, carrots, onions, celery, tomato paste and thyme."

"Yep, you got it," Hattori confirmed. "No question about it—we're getting lobster bisque."

"But is she trying to put her own spin on this?" Raine asked. "Lobster bisque is nothing new, considering it was a traditional dish at the festival of Undine at the—"

"Sis, nobody cares, and besides, I think four or five thousand years is enough time for it to be considered 'new' again," Genis scoffed.

"Whoa! Iron Chef Sage, bringin' the heat in the kitchen AND in the announcer's booth!" Fukui exclaimed with a chuckle.

Genis whispered to Fukui away from the microphone, "With Raine, the way she is, you kinda have to."

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

On the kitchen floor, Presea had left her carving counter and indulged in other endeavors. She whisked sugar and salt into a small bowl of rice vinegar.

"Ralph, how's that rice coming?" she called as she stirred to dissolve the solids.

"Two minutes, Presea!"

"Thanks! And Yuko, make sure that bisque is thickening, yeah? I don't want it to be like back at the restaurant when we had runny soup all week!"

"You got it!"

Presea dipped a finger into the bowl and tasted her seasoning. Nodding in approval, she then whisked the bowl near Ralph's station and told him to drizzle it over the rice once he cooled it.

"FIFTEEN MINUTES HAVE ELAPSED," came the time call. The crowd whipped itself into a frenzy.

"Whoa, already a quarter of the way through the battle," Fukui reacted, shocked. "Both chefs, their supporters in the audience cheering them on to victory in this final battle of the Aselia Cup Tournament!"

On the other side of the kitchen, Lloyd and his team were chopping various food items without any thought as to what they were going to do with them. Several bowls filled with chopped onions, carrots, mushrooms, zucchini, raw tuna, and shredded mozzarella cheese covered every available inch of counter space. The twin swordsman was struggling to connect the dots until an idea finally hit him.

"OK! I want everything in all these bowls into the food processor, now! I don't care if it doesn't all fit, throw combos in there until I get a nice mixture!"

His assistants looked confused, but then hesitantly picked up a few bowls and threw the contents into the food processor.

"Don't just stand there looking at me like an idiot! Do it!" Lloyd barked.

This got the commentators' attention. As Fukui and company shifted their glances to Lloyd's side of the kitchen, they were rather astonished and perplexed at what the twin swordsman was doing.

"Chef Irving seems to be throwing caution to the wind here with his ingredients—just what on earth is he doing?" Fukui wailed.

"I see a bunch of ingredients in a ton of different bowls that appear to be going into the food processor, but I can't even venture a guess as to what this guy is doing," Hattori added.

_He's not actually going to make…oh, you've got to be kidding me,_ Genis thought to himself.

"Call me crazy," the young mage spoke up, "but I think he's trying a lobster take on Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise." At this Raine went bug-eyed, a little concerned at where this spur-of-the-moment creation appeared to be heading.

"And what might that be?" Fukui asked.

"Basically he takes whatever he can find, mashes 'em up, does something crazy to it, throws it on a plate and calls it his dish. And I'm concerned—sometimes the dish is fantastic, but most of the time it's not worth eating."

"Fukui-san!"

"Go, Ohta!"

Ohta rattled off the list of ingredients in the food processor, but added, "No word on where or how the lobster will play into this dish yet, but Chef Irving's assured us that it will, back to you."

Genis's eyes locked in a bug-eyed state.

_I'm not liking the sound of that one bit._

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"THIRTY MINUTES HAVE ELAPSED," came the clock call a short while later. The crowd erupted in applause and cheers, encouraging the chefs on to success.

Presea felt the pressure to win, the uncertain nightmare that came with hoping her dishes turned out the way she planned and feeling frightened at the thought of failing miserably.

"Presea, the lobster fillets are ready for the handrolls. I left them next to the rice—it's been seasoned."

"_Hai_, thanks Yuko, I'll get to those in a couple of seconds."

Her lobster bisque had taken shape quite nicely, glowing a deep orange as it waited patiently on the kitchen counter. Presea couldn't help but smile as she returned to her carving.

The carving put her at ease, as it always did. She recalled the times on the journey when she would carve little wooden charms to take her mind off the impending battle. It was something Genis had suggested to her, out of concern that she was being too serious all the time. She seemed to forget she was battling in Kitchen Stadium, but rather cooking for her friends that she had come to know and love throughout the journey. And that was when she always made her best food.

She floated the tiny flower garnish she had just finished in the thick, orange soup. These thoughts—the thoughts of her traveling companions, the point of this entire tournament—kept her going throughout the battle. As she added more little garnishes to the soup, she had to suppress a rare smile to keep herself focused on the task at hand.

_Right…the handroll,_ she thought. She left her beloved carving station to work on her other dishes, beginning with the lobster handrolls.

On the other side of Kitchen Stadium, Lloyd kept the commentators guessing with his every move. The "drunken lobsters", as Fukui had come to call them, hadn't been touched beyond their initial treatment at the beginning of the battle. His Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise had the commentators (and much of the audience) rather disgusted at the moment as it hit a frying pan. Though Lloyd wouldn't admit it, it was not a very visually appealing dish.

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"I asked Chef Irving how his dishes appear to be turning out and he said, 'Honestly, I really have no idea what I'm doing—I'm just combining a ton of ingredients and hoping they taste good', back to you."

_Way to make me sound completely and utterly clueless, Ohta…I'm pretty sure I just told you that for just that one dish._

"Why am I not surprised…?" Genis sighed.

"Hey, I'm not THAT clueless, you know! I actually know what I'm going to do—Ohta over there just made me sound like an idiot!" Lloyd yelled at the young Iron Chef. "Now leave me alone!"

"Memo to self," Fukui noted aloud, "don't tick off the chefs when they know the methods to their own madness!"

He tossed four live lobsters into a long copper pot and put the lid on, setting it aside for the moment.

"Dwarven Pot Luck goes on the plate in five, yeah?" he called to his assistants.

"Two helpings already down, Lloyd. We need the lobster, is all," Chris, his assistant, shouted back.

"I skewered some tails earlier—what'd we do with those?"

"You threw them in the pressure cooker about five minutes ago…"

"Ah, hmm…let me think…" Lloyd assumed a pensive pose.

"TWENTY MINUTES TO GO."

"No, wait, I was saving those for something else! Do we have any more cooked lobster anywhere?"

"Here, Lloyd!" Ron, his other assistant, yelled back, holding up a bowl of chopped lobster meat.

"Perfect! I don't care what you did with it earlier—after the mixture goes down on the plate, just drop some of that on top!"

The change in plans had the commentators even more perplexed.

"I'm not even going to attempt to dissect his methodology with this dish at all," Raine grumbled.

"This might be—no wait, this IS—the most unusual dish we've ever seen on this show," Hattori flatly stated.

"Well, there's gotta be some method to his madness—you never know with Lloyd, it's weird. There's a lot of things on his side that just haven't taken shape yet, like that big long copper pot over there," Genis mentioned.

"You know, you're right," Hattori chimed. "Did we get a glimpse of what he threw in there? Doesn't appear to be doing anything with it yet."

Fukui's monitor showed that curious long pot, which was ever so slightly open. It only appeared to be taking up counter space.

"I can't see anything in it…" Fukui replied.

"Fukui-san! I have word from Chef Irving's assistants that he's put four whole lobsters and some konbu inside this pot, but when I asked them what they plan to do with it, they said, 'I can't tell you yet—this is Lloyd's ace in the hole, it's our secret weapon!' Back to you."

"Secret weapon, eh?" Fukui said, amused. "Thanks big fella, we'll have to keep a close eye on that. Now, let's swing back to the other side—Chef Combatir's lobster bisque is finished, she's got a lobster sashimi handroll in the works, and now…what's she got here?"

The camera was looking at several hollowed half-shells of lobsters that Presea had laid out, but had nothing done to it yet.

"Well, she's got something in a wok over there, so maybe she'll put whatever she's got in there into those shells and serve it like that?" Genis suggested.

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"Chef Combatir has combined chopped lobster meat, pineapple, peas, carrots, red and green bell peppers, hot chili sauce, mango, and red onions into her wok. And Iron Chef Sage is exactly right—she'll pour that mixture into those lobster shells you just saw."

"OK, thanks, Ohta—"

"And Fukui-san?"

"Yes?"

"Sorry to interrupt, but I'm told she's also going to add a kind of cream sauce to go along with that."

"Huh?" the announcers gasped in unison.

"But wouldn't that kill the spicy chili sauce she's added?" Genis asked.

"True, and the fruit she's added will only neutralize that spiciness even more. I'm not sure what she's going for here," Hattori replied.

"But I love sweet fruits! And the spiciness just has to come through somehow, given how much sauce she's using. I'm looking forward to this," Raine gushed. Genis only huffed and pretended to pay more attention to the battle.

_You're not really doing your credibility any favors right now, sis…_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"FIFTEEN MINUTES TO GO," the clock called to uproarious cheers from the audience. Lloyd, Presea, and the announcers really could not hear anything over the din of the crowd that still continued for a good while after the time call.

"Chris!" Lloyd shouted. "Heat up those rocks!"

"What?"

"I said," Lloyd repeated with hand motions this time, "heat up those rocks!"

"Open flame or what?"

"Yeah, over like a cooling rack or something!"

"Chef Irving has some stones over a fire here…what could he be doing with this?"

"I honestly have no idea," Genis said. "Whatever he does with it, though, I've never seen him do anything quite like it, especially since the last time Lloyd tried using rocks to cook he burned everybody."

Genis—and Lloyd, who heard him from the kitchen floor—grimaced at the time when Lloyd cooked for the group after watching a demonstration in Asgard. The chef had used hot stones like charcoal to cook beef, which inspired Lloyd to try the same thing later that night. Unfortunately, Lloyd's cooking process that day involved carrying the hot stones off the fire. He unceremoniously tripped, tossing the stones high in the air and leaving them raining onto everyone else. They suffered some bad burns that night, and Lloyd wasn't allowed to cook for the next two weeks.

"He hasn't used them since," Genis added.

"Well, in any event, he's taking a big risk with them now, we see them there over the hot fire, next to a pot of boiling soup, yes?"

"That would appear to be, yes," Hattori confirmed. "But I have no idea what's in that."

"Fukui-san!"

"Yes, Ohta?"

"Chef Irving apparently heard Iron Chef Sage's comment about the last time he used hot rocks and whined, 'Why did you have to bring that up now? I'm nervous enough as it is, now you've got me worried again!' He seemed to be worried so much, he didn't even tell me what's in that soup."

"OK, thanks, big fella, so we've got a mystery hot soup on our hands and we don't know where that's going at all, though both chefs are going to have to hustle if they want to finish on time—"

"TEN MINUTES TO GO."

"—and speaking of time, there isn't much of it left, just ten minutes to go in the final battle of the Aselia Cup Tournament. What a match we've had here so far between Presea Combatir, the evangelist of Ozette's rebirth and the champion of Tethe'allan cuisine; and Lloyd Irving, the Iselian grand general who is largely responsible for the prosperity this world enjoys today. They're duking it out with Ise lobster, quite possibly the most extravagant ingredient these two have ever worked with. And speaking of working with lobster, check out Chef Combatir on the other side—the handrolls are down, the shells are out of the oven, and—what's this here? Did we miss this?"

Presea had managed a fourth dish while the commentators were busy figuring out Lloyd's so-called "secret weapon"; she had plated a few servings of dumplings on her side, which Hattori was now analyzing.

"Dumplings, huh? What could have gone into this?"  
"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"I'm told there's Japanese lobster cured in kelp and white truffles in these gyoza—" here Ohta emphasized _white truffles_ "—which have been deep-fried as you see here."

"Indeed they have, and Chef Combatir doubling down on the luxury quotient here, _look_ at that texture—hey, _**I'm**_ getting hungry here!" Fukui exclaimed upon seeing the crisped gyoza skins.

"So the gyoza, the bisque, the hand roll, and the lobster-chili-sauce-in-a-shell concoction; that's four on Presea's side, but what about Lloyd?" Raine asked.

"Well, he appears to have one finished, the Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise," Genis began, "we've yet to see what he's going to do with that long pot, and he hasn't even touched the 'drunken lobsters' since the beginning of the battle! How much time does he have left?"

"A little under eight and a half minutes, I think," Fukui responded. "Oh! Look at this, the stones are going in!"

Lloyd, being careful not to drop the rack with the stones on them, poured the hot rocks into the long open pot. He motioned for one of his assistants to come over with the big pot of soup and pour it in as well.

"I see now," Hattori perked up. "He's cooking the lobsters inside the pot…"

The soup was now bubbling violently inside the long pot. Lloyd shook the pot a few times to re-position the lobsters inside, making sure each one got a nice hot bath. Satisfied, he closed the pot, sealed it, and made for the sake barrel.

"That's it?" Genis asked. "I guess he wants to let them soak until they get to the table…what was that soup, anyway?"

"Fukui-san! I'm told that was just kelp broth," Ohta chimed in. Genis rolled his eyes.

On the other side, Presea was calm and collected to the finish as she observed her handiwork. All of her dishes were plated with just six minutes to spare, so she focused on carving her garnishes. She whipped out a lemon, peeled back a part of the skin, made a few cuts in the skin, and tucked it into the part of the skin that was still intact. The cuts splayed out parts of the lemon skin into a sun shape, and she placed the piece near her handrolls.

"Any help, Presea?"

"Whatever you can come up with, Yuko. Make it look nice."

"THREE MINUTES TO GO."

On the other side, Lloyd was arranging his "drunken lobsters" around a bowl, which he had given a short grilling treatment shortly after taking them out.

"And here they are, finally," Fukui announced. "The drunken lobsters, out of the barrel, off the grill, and now looking sky-high towards a new age in Aselia…"

"You make that sound so nice," Raine cut in.

"Haha, why thank you, Professor, and now this appears to be it, correct? Lloyd's drunken lobsters, the Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise, and that long copper pot—I don't even know what to call that thing, but it's there."

"How about 'Lobster Hot Pot'?" Genis suggested.

"Hey, sounds pretty good to me. At this moment both sides appear to just be adding finishing touches to their dishes, with just a little bit of time left—"

"ONE MINUTE TO GO."

"Sixty seconds, to be exact, and the crowd is going crazy in here—I can't even hear what I'm saying right now…"

Both sides had accomplished everything they wanted to—a first in Kitchen Stadium, as far as these two were concerned.

"THIRTY SECONDS TO GO."

Presea had finished laying out her garnishes and had begun to pack away her carving kit.

"FIFTEEN SECONDS TO GO."

Lloyd scratched his head, knowing that at this point, the battle was out of his hands.

"TEN SECONDS TO GO."

The whole crowd was on its feet, cheering on the two chefs.

"FIVE SECONDS."

"The final seconds ticking down—"

"THREE."

"TWO."

"ONE."

"And THAT'S IT!" Fukui shouted. "The cooking's done, the Aselia Cup Tournament is OVAH!"

The announcers went silent, allowing the cheers and applause to reverberate throughout the outdoor Kitchen Stadium.

"What an ending to this incredible tournament!"

Lloyd met Presea on the stadium floor and embraced her.

"We did it…" she said as she met Lloyd's embrace.

"I'm sure you did…" Lloyd replied. "I sure as hell didn't."

"Do not say such things. Lack of confidence in your work is a sign of weakness. After all we have gone through, you don't want to show that to people, right? This is why we're here…because we've been strong."

Lloyd sighed as he looked around at the crowd applauding.

"You're right."

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**Been a long while, hasn't it? Hope this battle kept your interest. This should be a lesson in not leaving a battle unfinished for several months after writing the first part of it. But in any event, see who wins the Aselia Cup Tournament in the next couple of chapters! (No poll this time, because this time I have the rest of the story all planned out. I'm keeping you in the dark this time…hahahaha!)**


	14. Thirteen: The Last Supper

**And now, the moment of truth…tasting and judgment for the Aselia Cup Final Battle. Whose cuisine will reign supreme? It'll only be a matter of time before we find out.**

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**Chapter 13: The Last Supper**

**==FAHRENHEIT 451== (FUKUI NARRATING)**

Chef Combatir is offering four dishes.

First, Lobster Bisque. The succulent flavor of the Japanese lobsters complements the smooth bisque. Carrots and other vegetables flavor the creamy soup that also holds a radish flower she carved—putting her own stamp on a classic dish.

Second, Lobster Handroll. A Japanese tradition comes together with the Ozettian evangelist's own touch. Lightly boiled lobster fillets are held by a delicate balance of Aselian seaweed and vinegared rice.

Third, White Truffle and Lobster Gyoza. Lobster pieces cured with kelp have been combined with white truffle pieces and deep-fried, adding a luxurious flavor to an otherwise simple dish.

Last is Lobsters in Chili Sauce. A delicate balance of fruits and vegetables accompany the fire in her special chili sauce that coats generous chunks of lobster. It's a fiery way to end her tournament competition.

Chef Irving is offering three dishes.

First, Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise, Chef Irving's equivalent of throw-whatever-he-can-find-on-a-plate. An eclectic, if a bit bizarre, combination of ingredients attempt to harmonize with the delectable Japanese lobster.

Second, Iselian Drunken Lobster. He soaked these lobsters alive in Iselian sake for the majority of the battle before grilling them near the end. The sake treatment gives each lobster a more refreshing, clean taste.

Last, Lobster Hot Pot, another one of Lloyd's more unorthodox tactics during the battle. Live lobsters cured in kelp were soaked in hot kelp broth, aided by hot stones, and boiled in this long pot—which Chef Irving has sealed and will open just before the dish is to be enjoyed.

**==FIGHTING 17****TH****== (FUKUI NARRATING)**

Chairman Kaga's dream begins to come true with the coming of the final battle of the Aselia Cup Tournament.

And the crowd of nearly five thousand people were in for a treat as they saw the Ozettian evangelist compete for the title herself—the winner of the Tethe'alla semifinal, Presea Combatir.

She crosses knives with the World Regeneration party leader, the Sylvarant semifinal winner, Lloyd Irving.

For the final battle, Chairman Kaga unveils the theme—the king of seafood for the end-all, be-all of all cooking contests…Japanese lobster!

Chef Combatir, calm and collected to the very end, whips up a luxurious set of four dishes.

Chef Irving, slightly panicked but fighting valiantly all the way through, counters with a set of three.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Presea stood to the Chairman's left at the judges' table, bearing a stone faced expression as the panel began to take their seats. Genis insisted on taking the seat closest to the Chairman upon seeing Presea. He sat down and winked at her.

Presea's expression did not change, but inside she felt her heart skip a beat.

The Professor took her seat next to her brother, followed by Yuan and Dirk, both of whom Presea was expecting. She was not, however, expecting the next face who took his seat at the very end of the table.

_Kratos?_ she thought upon seeing him. _I thought angels couldn't taste anything, though…_

"I know what you're thinking, Presea," the seraph interrupted her thoughts as she stared at him rather dumbfounded. "I have my ways, don't worry."

The little woodcutter shrugged and turned her attention to the Chairman, who had just taken his seat at the head of the table. The Kitchen Stadium staff was bringing her first dish, her bisque, to the table.

"Shall we begin?" Kaga asked, gesturing to the soup.

"Ah, yes," Presea responded, snapping out of her reverie. "This, as you can see, is a lobster bisque. I've flavored it with a lot of different vegetables you might typically see around Ozette. You'll hear me say that a lot, as it's my inspiration for this course—taking native Ozettian ingredients and incorporating them with this top-class food item."

"I've heard legends about this dish being the prime item at ceremonies at the Temple of Water," Raine stated. "You've done a wonderful job of combining all the ingredients together. I feel as though I'm taking part in the legend myself!"

Genis shook his head. _Just don't go into Ruin Mode over a soup, sis…_

"Ah, there's a good soup," Dirk sighed as he lowered his spoon. "So smooth. And I love the little flower carving in the middle. Just too pretty to eat! Looks like it could go on a necklace or something."

Presea bowed, not really knowing what to say. She turned away to fetch her next course, the lobster handroll.

"Who would've thought we would be getting sushi?" Kaga wondered aloud.

"It's such a simple dish, yet so complex in style," Genis replied as he took a bite.

Presea felt her heart flutter a little bit as Genis chewed. She could already tell he loved it.

_Well, maybe he IS a little bit biased…_

He held up his thumb as he swallowed. "Love it! The textures are to die for."

"I apologize in advance for being so critical," Kratos added, "but this dish wouldn't exactly prompt me to think 'Iron Chef'. It's quite delicious, don't get me wrong, but I feel that you could've been a little more creative in your approach."

"Yeah, I'm with Kratos on this one," Yuan followed. "Tastes great, but I feel you could've done a little more to this."

Presea shrugged, a little confused by the panel's reaction.

_It made sense to me at the time…they don't usually make sushi out of lobster, right…?_

"Gyoza, is this?" Kaga asked as Presea's third course was brought to the table.

"Yes, with white truffles mixed in with the lobster," she replied. "I know white truffles aren't a common ingredient anywhere you go, but I figured I'd try something different, something I haven't used before."

"It's an odd combination on paper," Yuan began, "but here it actually works, in its strange little way. Very nice job on this one."

"And the lobsters were cured in kelp before you combined them with the truffles, right?" Genis asked.

"Yes, that's correct."

"No wonder they taste so good! I often view kelp as the 'miracle' ingredient because it can used with basically anything, but you've combined it with an unfamiliar ingredient to make a great combination. Can't really say I know what this taste is, but I like it."

Presea flashed a small grin at the young Iron Chef before dashing off to retrieve her last course.

_I pulled out all the stops for this one…hopefully my gamble will pay off…_

"This looks a bit like Chen Kenichi's Ebi-Chili Sauce, doesn't it?" Kaga asked.

"Yes, it does—I drew inspiration from that dish to create this one. This one's sweet and spicy. I couldn't resist putting in a few of my favorite fruits and vegetables from my hometown."

"You know, I absolutely love spicy dishes," Raine began.

"Maybe a little TOO much," Genis grumbled, to the amusement of the panel.

"Dare I say, I think the sweetness actually intensifies the spiciness of the sauce. It's quite good, though I question a few of your vegetable choices. Particularly the red onion."

"You know, normally when Raine offers cooking advice I tend to shy away from it, for obvious reasons," Kratos added. "But I have to say, I actually agree with her for once. The red onion throws off the balance of flavors in this dish, but since I've ignored many of the onion chunks in my portion I've actually come to enjoy this quite a bit."

"And might I add," Dirk cut in, "no one beats you in the presentation department. I'm surely going to give you full marks for that—these carvings are absolutely beautiful. Using the shell of the lobster was a really creative idea."

"But the dish itself is quite good, save for that onion bit," Yuan replied. "Were you going to add a cream sauce over this, is that what I heard?"

"Yes, but I abandoned the idea once I had the idea for the gyoza."

"I see. It's a good thing you didn't, I think, because that probably would've—and again, here I go with that phrase—thrown off the balance of flavors. It's perfectly fine as-is."

Presea bowed lightly, and thanked the Chairman and panel.

_My work here is done…it is out of my hands now._

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

As Lloyd was brought out of the holding room and to the judges' table, he noticed his heart rate dramatically rise.

_Am I getting nervous? I mean, let's be real here, if I win, great, if not, no big deal…right?_

He took a deep breath to try to calm himself down. He took his place next to the head of the table and bowed to the panel as his first course was brought out.

"So how was the hour?" Kaga asked him as soon as the plates were down.

"Well…you know," the twin swordsman sighed. "But don't make me do it again, is all I have to say. I was never that fond of fighting my closest friends."

Genis laughed a little inside. _A typical 'Lloyd' response…_

"I see…" the Chairman said as he glanced at the strange-looking, pancake-like substance on the plate in front of him.

"Pardon me for being blunt, but what exactly is this?"

"Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise! It's my specialty," Lloyd stated rather matter-of-factly. "I take whatever I can grab in the kitchen, combine them altogether in a sort of frittata-looking thing, and voila!"

"But do you ever know how it tastes?" the Chairman asked.

"Well…no, but that's part of the fun!" Lloyd replied. "And it never tastes the same way twice!"

The Chairman shrugged and took a bite of the frittata, maintaining a look of pure confusion on his face all the while.

"You have to understand, Mr. Chairman," Raine began, "that the probability of success—and by this I mean the dish tasting good—is highly variable. With the kind of ingredients Lloyd used this time around, who knows how it'll taste. Not even Lloyd knows!" And with that, she took a bite.

"Well, I'm still alive, at least," Genis replied rather sardonically. "At least it's not a total failure."

Lloyd and Genis both laughed. Lloyd's highly variable success factor, as Raine put it, became a bit of an inside joke between the two. Genis smirked as he remembered one particular time Lloyd made Dwarven Pot Luck Surprise—upon tasting it, Genis claimed he was within an inch of his life.

"I actually…kinda like it," Yuan added. "Maybe I'm just a little biased because I love cheese and that there's a good helping of it in here, but all the ingredients actually work really well with the lobster, oddly enough."

"I disagree," Kratos replied. "I wouldn't voluntarily eat this, and Yuan…what on Aselia are you talking about?"

Lloyd gave a nervous chuckle before he hurried out of the room to fetch the drunken lobsters.

"Wow, these look really good," Dirk remarked as he received his plate.

"But how do they taste?" Genis challenged as he dug into his.

"Very, very good," Dirk replied. "It's a refreshing flavor—I suppose the only thing that would've made it better is if, Lloyd, you had soaked it in dwarven ale instead of sake."

"That's only because you like it so much, Dad…" Lloyd muttered under his breath.

"We've had, what, six lobster plates up to this point?" Kratos asked. "And without having tasted the last one yet, I can safely say that this is my favorite one. No, it's not just because you made it, Lloyd, but rather that the smokiness of the grill you used combined with the strong sake flavor matches almost perfectly. And you've let the natural essence of these lobsters shine in this dish."

"How poetic you've become, Kratos," Raine remarked. The panel laughed the remark off as Lloyd went to fetch the mysterious long pot.

"Ah, yes, the one we've all been waiting for," Kaga remarked. The panel applauded as the lid came off the pot, revealing four steaming lobsters surrounded by kelp, hot soup, and hot stones. Lloyd gave a generous hunk of lobster and kelp to each panel member, accompanied by a little sea salt and pepper on the plate.

"I think this dish is the culmination of your creative genius," Raine said. "Having taught you for many years and being disappointed one too many times, I think this is the first time in recent memory—saving the world notwithstanding, of course—that I'm actually able to say with certainty: Lloyd, I'm proud of you."

"I echo Raine's sentiments, might I add," Kratos chimed in. "You've served these lobsters without any sort of accompaniment aside from the simple things—kelp, salt, and pepper. This is the ultimate form of cuisine. You should add this to the menu at your restaurant. If you don't, I may never come by again."

_Duly noted,_ Lloyd thought.

"It was such an elaborate presentation, with the soup bubbling out of the pot when the rocks went in," Genis added. "Even _I'm_ impressed, Lloyd. I want to know where you got this idea, because the people in Altamira would _love_ it."

"Thank you, Chef Irving. We will call you when we are ready," the Chairman said, showing him out of the room.

Lloyd beamed.

_Score!_

_

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**And with that, the final battle draws to a close. The only thing left to see is whose cuisine reigns supreme, and who will get to fight the bonus battle that Kaga has set up for the winner! Please review! Thank you for reading!**


	15. Fourteen: The Last Verdict

**The moment of truth: whose cuisine reigns supreme, and who wins the Aselia Cup? The verdict…and more!**

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**Chapter 14: The Final Verdict**

Chairman Kaga took his familiar place behind the ingredient stand as the crowd welcomed him and the panel back to the stadium with anxious applause. Kratos held the Aselia Cup trophy, with Genis tailing him with the 250,000 gald in tow.

"The Aselia Cup Tournament," Kaga boomed forth. "Before I announce the verdict for the final, allow me to say a few words."

Lloyd and Presea, standing tall on the kitchen floor, stared at Kaga intently. Lloyd took a breath to calm himself, while no emotion, as usual, crossed Presea's face.

"The chefs that I have selected for this tournament, as you all know, were part of the group that was responsible for the World Regeneration. They are the reason that I have decided to create this tournament…"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Two men were sitting in separate chairs, tied back-to-back to each other, their mouths covered. They struggled to break free as they were shoved into an elevator stall, grunting all the while.

"If you know what's good for you, you'll cooperate and stay quiet while I pull off this operation," the man said in a low voice. "Now shut up."

The two tied-up men only struggled more, vehemently protesting their restraint. Their captor brandished a knife.

"Do I have to use this to make you understand? It would be a tragedy here in Kitchen Stadium if all of Aselia heard that their two culinary heroes—never mind one of them being the so-called 'King of Iron Chefs'"—here the man scoffed—"now, wouldn't it?" He shut the door to the elevator stall the two men were tied in, and scurried over to an adjacent stall.

_Now hurry up out there and let me make short work of this "champion" you are about to crown…_

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"…let us all give them a round of applause!" Kaga said, riling the crowd into cheers. Lloyd and Presea bowed, while the other members of the party in the audience stood at their seats and acknowledged.

"However," the Chairman interrupted, quieting the crowd, "we must not forget that this does not change the results of the culinary battle that has just transpired here. I have them right here," he said, holding up the familiar black book. "No doubt you are aware by now that the winner will take home 250,000 gald and the Aselia Cup."

Lloyd and Presea looked at each other on the kitchen floor.

_Good luck,_ they seemed to say to one another.

"Now…the verdict."

**==TIME LAPSE==**

"What an incredible series of events in this Aselia Cup Tournament," Fukui narrated over the tense music. "Chef Lloyd Irving, the whimsical grand general, putting his all on the line to promote Chairman Kaga's message: peace through good food. Chef Presea Combatir, the Ozettian carving artist, bringing hope to her hometown. They both fought hard, and they both fought to the very bitter end. And now, it is time to know…who takes it? Whose cuisine reigns supreme?"

Kaga opened the book after the music faded out, silence hanging over the stadium.

"The five judges scored as follows…

"Dirk Irving: 19-18, Lloyd Irving."

_One down…though that was a gimme,_ Lloyd thought. Presea did not bat an eye.

"Yuan Ka-Fai: 16-14, Presea Combatir."

_Fourteen? _Lloyd thought. _Jeez, he's a tough critic…_

"Raine Sage: 19-18, Lloyd Irving."

_It is out of your hands, Presea…_ the little woodcutter thought. _Do not worry…Ozette will be proud of you no matter what._

"Genis Sage: 20-18, Presea Combatir."

_Figures,_ Lloyd scoffed.

_And now it comes down to the last vote…_ Presea thought.

"And Kratos Aurion…"

Kaga gave the crowd a chance to calm down over the anticipation.

"…18-16, Lloyd Irving!"

_Say wha—_

"That means the Aselia Cup Tournament Champion is…LLOYD IRVING!"

**==FAHRENHEIT 451==**

"It's Lloyd Irving!" Fukui exclaimed as the crowd exploded. "The Iselian grand general has won it! The ultimate honor, the Aselia Cup goes to him!"

Lloyd could barely believe his ears, dumbly ambling to the middle of the kitchen floor. Presea nearly had to catch him from bowling her over as the two met in between the kitchens.

"You did it," she said with a slight grin on her face. "Congratulations."

"I—I don't know how I…thank you," Lloyd replied weakly.

"Well, it's simple…you were the better chef."

"Don't be silly, I got lucky, that's all…"

The two embraced and held it for what seemed to be an eternity. Somehow the two heard Genis, standing at center stage, clear his throat to signal to them that they needed to break it up.

"And if the Aselia Cup Champion will proceed to the podium…waiting there is Kratos Aurion and Iron Chef Sylvaranti Genis Sage."

The twin swordsman stepped onto the podium as Kratos approached him with the trophy in hand. The seraph paused for the slightest of moments before he told Genis to hold the trophy for him while he beckoned Lloyd down from the podium. Confused, the twin swordsman stepped down and confronted his father. No sooner did he step off than Kratos scooped him up into an embrace, trying to hide the tear welling up in his eye all the while.

"Dad—?"

The seraph said nothing, just letting the music and the applause ring out over the two of them.

"Your mother would be very proud of you," he muttered. "I'm sure she already is. I know I am."

"You what?" Lloyd muttered back, half surprised and half not being able to hear him.

_Don't let this turn into one of those sappy family reunion moments, Aurion…you're on TV, for Martel's sake. Martel knows there's too much of that already,_ Kratos thought.

"I said, your mother would be very proud of you," he said a little louder. "She already is. I know I am. Now get back up on that podium and let me hand you the trophy."

Lloyd did exactly that, and held the trophy high in the air when Kratos handed it to him. The crowd exploded. Up near the ingredient stand, Raine was applauding with a grin on her face, a tear beginning to well up.

_I don't normally do this…what's gotten into you, Raine?_ she thought. _Lloyd…I'm proud of you, for what may actually be the first time in recent memory—outside of saving the world, of course._

"Lloyd! You did it!" Genis shouted, clapping his best friend on the shoulder as best as his small stature would allow. "Don't spend this all in one place!" he said jokingly as he handed him the case of money.

"Your next meal at my place is the first thing I'm spending this on," he said. "And anyone from our group, really."

"Haha, thanks."

"And although she lost this battle," Fukui narrated over the crowd, "Chef Presea Combatir showed us an incredible display of her abilities, pushing herself to the limit, making this an exciting battle to watch…and in that sense, she comes out as a winner too! Presea Combatir!"

The little woodcutter joined Lloyd at the base of the podium. At long last, the crowd had quieted down to allow Kaga to speak.

"It was, without a doubt, a truly remarkable battle," Kaga remarked once the crowd was silenced. "But the real final match has yet to be fought."

Lloyd's eyes widened. _But I thought I—oh, wait, so THAT'S what that was for? Great…_

"For right now, the Aselia Cup Champion has a big mission to fulfill—some, shall we say, unfinished business?

"As you all know, Iron Chef Sylvaranti Genis Sage was once a challenger to my Kitchen Stadium. He was the first to defeat Iron Chef Sakai here in Aselia, which is when I invited him to join my ranks as an Iron Chef. Shortly afterwards, he was challenged by Honorary Iron Chef Michiba, and lost to him. So as the score stands, the World Regeneration Group and my Iron Chefs are dead even. I want Lloyd to fight one more battle against my Iron Chefs to settle this rivalry once and for all. I'll have this man, the Iron Chef he selected for this final challenge, close this tournament out."

Kaga wasted no time before he smiled and boomed forth:

"Yomigaeru-ai…IRON CHEF!"

**==FINAL SHORE==**

The Iron Chefs' portraits on the left side of Kitchen Stadium glowed as smoke billowed from the dais.

"Ascending into the ethereal atmosphere and claiming his rightful position in Kitchen Stadium…" Fukui narrated, but was too carried away in his script to even notice that something was amiss.

Instead of the Iron Chef Kaga was expecting, two Iron Chefs ascended into view on the same platform, but tied back-to-back in chairs. Chen and Sakai could only look out over the crowd pitifully, ashamed of being seen in their current state—these men, these culinary gods, reduced to captives. But of whom, the crowd did not know.

"What is the meaning of this?" Kaga bellowed angrily even though Fukui kept narrating. "Silence, Fukui! Who is responsible for this? Show yourself!"

"Hehehe…you really didn't expect me to pull something, Kaga?" a voice rang out over the Stadium. "After you oh-so-conveniently _forgot_ to invite me to this tournament? I taught them everything I know for them to get to this point, I'll have you know…"

A chef's hat poked out of the dais to the left of where Chen and Sakai were tied. Kaga could make out a large fork ascending into view as well, realization hitting him with an expression of horror and fury on his face.

"It is I, the mysterious gourmet, the Wonder Chef!"

The audience gasped. Kaga frowned at him.

"Chef Martin Ellis. You have returned," he said, clearly not pleased with the current situation. "I am sure you have an explanation for all of this?"

"If you'll allow me," the Wonder Chef replied. "I taught these saviors of the world everything they know about the culinary arts. Without my help, they wouldn't even be a part of this little operation of yours. So why was I not invited to this tournament? I want to prove to you that I am the best in all of Aselia, and I plan to take down your champion!" he bellowed, pointing at Lloyd.

"But why did you have to kidnap Chen and Sakai?" Raine asked.

"It's a bargaining chip, really. I challenge your champion to a battle. If Lloyd wins, of course I'll release them. But if I win, well, they'll just have to work under me."

Kaga glanced at Lloyd, who wore a fighting look on his face. He silently understood that Lloyd wanted to battle, that he wanted to take him down.

"Oh, but first, of course…" Chef Ellis snapped his fingers, making Chen and Sakai vanish from view in a puff of smoke. "Now. You will regret not inviting me here to begin with, Kaga."

"We shall see. Now, take your place," the Chairman huffed. "Lloyd, if you will please, back to your side."

The two chefs met glances—Lloyd's of confusion, the Wonder Chef's of determination.

"I had chosen this theme ingredient in accordance with the circumstances before Chef Ellis came along and shook everything up," Kaga declared. "However, I do believe it fits the tone of this match quite nicely. Lloyd appears to be in a very stressful position. So much that any other human being would crack under the pressure. And then, it came to me: crack under pressure. A delicate, but fragile theme ingredient."

_You'd think I'd be used to his waxing poetic philosophies on theme ingredients by now…_ Lloyd thought. _I still don't have a clue as to what this theme could be!_

"And now, we unveil the ingredient. The theme to determine the best chef in Aselia…IS THIS!"

For the last time in the tournament, Kaga ripped the red tablecloth off the ingredient stand and released a cloud of smoke. A large straw basket holding dozens of brown spherical objects rose from the table.

"The theme to decide the best in Aselia is…EGGS!"

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**And with that, the secret behind the mysterious man is finally revealed! Irving…Ellis…the battle to decide the world's best…on the next Iron Chef Symphonia! Stick around!**


	16. Fifteen: Tamago Confront

**Talk about a stunning bonus grand finale! Martin Ellis, Wonder Chef, versus Lloyd Irving, Aselia Cup Champion…who will be crowned the best chef in all of Aselia? And what will happen to Sakai and Chen? We will soon find out…stay hungry, my friends!**

**

* * *

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**Chapter 15: Tamago Confront**

**==YOU GO, WE GO==**

}K{

TO DETERMINE WORLD'S BEST

マーティン・エリス VS ロイド・アーヴィング

TAMAGO CONFRONT

"Oh, my! An unusual turn of events coming to Kitchen Stadium Symphonia, as challenger Ellis has kidnapped Iron Chefs Sakai and Chen while demanding a match from Aselia Cup Champion Lloyd Irving," Fukui narrated over the tense music. "Chairman Kaga, obviously shaken by this turn of events, tries not to crack under the circumstances and offers eggs as the theme for this bonus grand finale…60 minutes that will rock the culinary world, let's get it on!"

"ALLEZ CUISINE!" Kaga boomed.

"Yes! Bang a gong, we are on!" Fukui exclaimed as Lloyd and the Wonder Chef scampered up to the ingredient stand. "Both men now getting their hands on an incredible selection of eggs, and Doc?"

"Yeah?"

"These apparently aren't any ordinary eggs that you buy at the store, here, are they?"

"No, they're not," Hattori, the culinary expert, replied. "There's a hundred of them up there, and these are not the mass-produced eggs that were picked up from cages, these were actually picked up off the ground from wherever they've been laid by hens that are running free, which makes them even more valuable. They look great."

"No kidding! Those eggs cost a pretty penny, and both men now making their way back to their respective sides of the kitchen with their basketful of eggs—"

"Fukui-san!"

"Yes, from the floor, Shinichiro Ohta, go!"

"I have some comments from the Wonder Chef, Chef Ellis, made before the battle—he said, 'I was rather upset that I wasn't invited to this tournament, as I was the one who taught the World Regeneration Party all the recipes I know to begin with, so even Genis wouldn't be where he is today without me'—and concerning the battle, he said, 'I've never lost a cooking competition in my entire life, and I'm not about to start now!' I can't tell whether he's confident or just out for revenge."

"All right, thanks, big fella, the man says even Iron Chef Sylvaranti Sage wouldn't have the title if it weren't for his teachings, and he's had no experience at all with losing, so he is all business in this one…and speaking of Chef Ellis, he's already got something in the steamer—didn't quite see what it was there, maybe we'll get a report on that later, and now he's whipping up something, puttin' some muscle into that."

"Looks like just the egg whites to me," said Hattori.

"Yes, you're exactly right, no yellow to be seen in that bowl he's working on, and now back to Chef Irving's side, he's got what appears to be eggs and flour mixed together here…"

"And uni going into that too?"

"Yep, it would appear to be, and he's mixing that one up nicely…"

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"You're exactly right, Chef Irving has eggs, sea urchin roe, and not just any old flour, but ukiko flour."

"Oh, ukiko," Hattori lit up.

"And the difference is?"

"Well, it's the top layer when you make flour, so the stuff's loaded with protein."

"All right, got it. And now, before we get too carried away, let's introduce our guests for this rather strange turn of events: first, Iron Chef Japanese Masaharu Morimoto, pleasure to have you here."

"Thank you."

"Morimoto-san, a bit strange knowing what happened to Sakai and Chen earlier on, huh?"

"Yeah, a little bit, but despite all of that I will still vote for the better chef. After all, this is a battle first and foremost. But there's no question that I'll have a difficult decision to make."

"All right, well, try to enjoy this despite the circumstances."

"I will, thank you."

"And joining him is Iron Chef Italian, Masahiko Kobe."

"Pleasure to be here."

"Kobe-san, what do you think of today's theme ingredient?"

"There's so many possibilities with this, my head is spinning. You could do so many things with these that I'm not sure what to expect. But Chef Irving has already proved himself quite a bit, and I've battled Chef Ellis before—he's certainly not to be taken lightly. So it'll definitely be exciting."

"All right, well, enjoy the battle today."

"Will do."

"And of course, our commentator, Dr. Yukio Hattori."

"Always a pleasure."

"Fukui-san!"

"Yeah?"

"I have some comments from Chef Irving made before the battle as well—he said, 'It's certainly true that the Wonder Chef taught me the recipes we used to survive during the World Regeneration Journey, but titles don't matter, it's all about the quality of what you turn out right here, right now. Having said that, he seems like he's a great chef, so I know this isn't going to be easy', back to you."

"All right, thanks Ohta, the newly-crowned Aselia Cup Champion can evidently recognize a good chef when he sees one, and now speaking of Chef Irving, what's he got going here?"

The cameras turned to Lloyd sticking some white objects into the pressure cooker.

"Some kind of seafood item, I think?" Hattori chimed in. "Looks like there's something else along with that, looked like leeks or something."

"Fukui-san?"

"Go!"  
"These are shark's fins that Chef Irving is placing into the pressure cooker, and as for that other item I couldn't get a good read on what it was, but I believe Hattori-san is exactly right, back to you."

"Thanks Ohta, and guys? Any ideas with this one?"

"I'm gonna guess a kind of soup, as that's what Chen-san always does with shark's fin. At least, when it's not the theme ingredient," Kobe said.

"And how would the egg come into play there?" Fukui asked.

"Well…I'm not too sure," Kobe said sheepishly. Morimoto chuckled.

"Now, back to the other side, it looks like Chef Ellis has…well, I'm not sure what he's got going on here."

The Wonder Chef had taken his mixture of beaten egg whites and sugar and, having spooned some of it onto a large spoon, was sculpting it into cone-shaped structures.

"I…honestly have no idea what he's doing here," Morimoto said, shaking his head.

"Looking a bit like icebergs, aren't they?" Hattori said.

"Yeah, you're right, they kinda do…" Kobe added.

"And there he goes, sticking those into a pot of boiling water…but why would he need to do that?" Wouldn't it break up?"

"Well, it's protein, right? So you put that in hot water and it'll actually start to harden a little bit until it reaches a certain temperature," Hattori explained.

"Well, OK, but I wonder…would this be a dessert of some kind?"

"Yeah, I guess he's going to do this to maintain the shape," Morimoto chimed in.

"Fukui-san!"

"Whatcha got?"

"I got some information about these egg icebergs courtesy of Honorary Iron Chef French Ishinabe, who says that these are actually called 'iles flottantes', which means 'floating islands' in French. He says these are typically used as desserts—more specifically over a custard, so I suppose that's what to expect from this."

"All right, thanks Ohta—and thanks Ishinabe-san, incidentally, who's here watching this surprise grand finale—"

"FIFTEEN MINUTES HAVE ELAPSED."

"All right, we're already a quarter of the way through this surprise grand finale to the Aselia Cup Tournament—bit of a bizarre turn of events following Lloyd Irving's victory in the main tournament, for those of you just joining us, he was supposed to face off against the Iron Chef of his choice for a shot at joining the Chairman's squad of Iron Chefs, but when it came time for that, the Iron Chef he chose to challenge was kidnapped along with another one of our Iron Chefs, and the kidnapper himself demanded a match with the champion, and so that's where we stand right now, fifteen minutes into said match."

"Now take a look at the Wonder Chef here, I think he's got his pressure cooker in action as well," said Morimoto.

"Yeah? He's got some round objects in there, from the looks of it, are those eggs?" Fukui asked.

"No, they're too…_speckled_ to be eggs…" Kobe mused.

"Fukui-san? These are potatoes that he's added to his pressure cooker, which also contains regular rice."

"Hm, okay, still no word on how the eggs will factor into this one…any ideas?"

Hattori adjusted his glasses. "I'm…sorry, I have _no_ idea where he's going with this one."

"No matter there, the pressure cooker is now in action, so it'll only be a matter of time before we figure out what's going on with that one."

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"I don't know how long it's been going, but Chef Irving's rice cooker is in action, and the word on the floor is that he's making sushi rice."

"What? Sushi rice? Wouldn't he need more time for that?" Fukui said.

"He might have to scramble a bit towards the end of the battle, but he might have enough time if he started it early enough," Morimoto added. "Granted, it's a huge gamble, but I'll be impressed if he can pull it off."

"OK, but where would he incorporate eggs into this?"

"The only thing I can think of is tamagoyaki sushi, but that's just too orthodox for a competition like this," Kobe replied.

"Well, there's still about 40 minutes left in the battle, so maybe it's a little too early to get a read on that one," Fukui said. "But look what else he's got going on here, looks like small pie crusts or something?"

"What's he going to do here?"

"And something else—is that lobster?"  
"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"This is indeed Ise-ebi, or Japanese lobster, on Lloyd Irving's side—I'm told he's going to do a sort of lobster quiche, using some of the lobster he didn't use from the last battle."

"All right, thanks Ohta, one of the lobsters thought it got away lucky, I suppose, but certainly not the case now…"

"Hey, check out what the Wonder Chef is doing," Kobe interrupted.

The Wonder Chef had a frying pan heating up on his stove and was beating eggs in a small bowl. Setting the egg mixture aside, he picked up the pan (which had heated up considerably) and patted it with his hand.

"Whoa, what the—what was that all about?" Fukui asked.

"I think he might've been testing the temperature or something," Hattori replied.

"With his bare hand?" added Kobe.

"Well, remember earlier how Chef Irving said he could recognize a good chef when he saw one, I guess the _really_ good chefs do crazy things like that!"

The announcers' booth was laughing when Fukui spoke again:

"Yeah, kids, don't try that one at home, OK? You heard it here first. Anyway, back to the action, and it looks like he's making some kind of an omelet or crepe here?"

The Wonder Chef was pouring thin layers of eggs into the hot pan he had just patted with his bare hands.

"Wow, those are thin," chimed Morimoto.

"Yeah, I wonder how this will play out," Kobe added.

"He wastes no time in getting those down and out, but wouldn't he need a little oil in that pan?"

"Well, actually, it's better if you cook—when you're making an omelet—it's better if you cook it without oil, especially if you're trying to make the thicker omelets."

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"I've just received word that the Wonder Chef is planning on using these as skins for shao mai later on."

"Man alive, egg shao mai—Chinese-style dumplings—coming our way today…whoa!"

Fukui reacted to the loud sound of Chef Ellis flipping his pan and slamming it down on the cutting board to dislodge the shao mai skin.

"Slammin' it down, Chef Ellis, he'll be able to turn those into shao mai soon enough…I think I saw some pork go into the steamer a little while ago, so this might be what that was for…and now back to the other side…I think this was one of Chef Irving's we saw earlier, correct?"

"That's right," Hattori confirmed. "If you recall, he put shark's fins in the pressure cooker, and it looks like those are coming out now…"

"Pressure cooker's cooling off, I think he also had abalone in there, I'm not sure, but the lid's coming off…camera lens fogging up there," Fukui said with a chuckle, "and let's see…"

Lloyd dropped another item into the pressure cooker, then promptly stuck the lid back on.

"What was that?" Kobe asked.  
"Oh, dried scallops," Hattori said rather matter-of-factly. "Don't know why he's adding those, but it looks like that's to add to the shark's fin…which, I think, was the only thing in there…"

"Well, it sounds good, if only to boost the luxury factor in that one," Fukui said before swinging the action back to the other side. The Wonder Chef was beginning to cut into his thin omelet that he was going to use for shao mai, and stacked the cut skins like coasters on his cutting board. The Wonder Chef made for his steamer and pulled out the pork he had left there earlier.

"Wow, do those look good or what?" Fukui exclaimed.

"Oh yes, and they'll look even better once he steams them further," Hattori added.

"Lots of savory goodness on that one, and did you catch that? It looks like Chef Ellis also has some piecrusts out, little bigger than Chef Irving's, but I wonder what these will be for? Did anything indicate he'd be doing a quiche?"

"Uh, not a quiche, but I think it has something to do with those egg white floating islands from earlier…" Hattori jumped in.

"Fukui-san!"

"Yes Ohta!"

"Hattori-san is exactly right, Chef Ellis says these will be for those floating islands—he'll be making a custard, putting that in the piecrusts, and sitting the egg white shape—which he boiled in hot water earlier—right on top."

"All right, thanks Ohta, and once again, Doc, you've hit the nail right on the head!"

Hattori just laughed. "That's why I'm here, after all."

"THIRTY MINUTES HAVE ELAPSED."

"All right, we're already halfway through this last battle, the Egg Battle, and both sides coming up with some great dishes today with one of the most versatile ingredients around, proving the great caliber of both of these chefs."

"Oh, check out what Chef Irving is doing," Morimoto interrupted Fukui's commentary. "I think…this is the egg and sea urchin mixture he's spooning into this little contraption here."

"Sure enough, there it is…"

"Watch this, this is really cool," Hattori lit up. "I've seen this done before. He'll spoon the mixture into the contraption and squeeze it into the hot water over there."

Soon after Hattori said it, Lloyd did exactly that.

"Sure enough, there he goes with those into that hot pot, giving those a quick heat treatment before I presume he puts those over something else…"

"That's what I'm thinking too," Hattori jumped in.

"Hey Fukui-san," Morimoto interjected, "take a look at what Chef Ellis is doing. I think this was the rice and potatoes from the pressure cooker."

"Sure enough, I think he took that out while we weren't looking, but now…it just kinda looks like rice and potatoes to me, any ideas where he's going to go with this?"

"I…honestly have no earthly idea where he's going with this, sorry," Hattori replied. "Actually, hang on, what does this look like here…?"

"I tell you what, it looks a lot like rice porridge to me," Fukui replied, to the amusement of the announcers. "With potatoes!" he added.

"So with the initial treatment in the pressure cooker," Kobe thought aloud, "maybe he'll cook this further, something along the lines of a broth later?"

"Could be, but what's he doing here?" Morimoto asked as the Wonder Chef dumped the entire mixture into the blender, dropped some egg yolks into it as well, and started the blender.

"I don't know about you, but I can't follow his line of thought on this one at all," Hattori said.

"Fukui-san!"

"Yes?"

"Yeah, the ingredients in the blender here are the rice and potatoes that just came out of the pressure cooker as well as the egg yolks he just added."

"What is THIS all about?" Fukui inquired.

"No clue at all," Hattori replied.

"Well, hey, he's got me stumped on this one," Fukui said. "Meantime, swinging back to the other side, Chef Irving's got a pot on the stove here…"

"Ah, the Ise-ebi from the last battle," Hattori chimed.

"That it is, and I think we heard something about a quiche earlier, right?"

"That's right."

"But it looks like there's more than just lobster in that pot," Morimoto jumped in. "Looks like some herbs or vegetables went in there."

"Fukui-san!"

"Yes?"

"I'm told he added cilantro and spinach to this."

"Hmm, interesting pairing there," Kobe said.

"Does it go well with lobster?"

"Spinach alone, sure, but cilantro? I'm curious as to how this will turn out…"

"By curious, you mean worried?" Morimoto prodded.

"…Yeah, a little bit of that too."

"Well, he seems to know what he's doing with this dish, some mozzarella going into the bottom of those piecrusts, and look! There's the eggs and milk that he's beating together for that quiche…"  
"TWENTY MINUTES TO GO."

"All right, twenty minutes left, the last third of this battle now getting underway as we swing back to the other side—"

"Oh, look, the shao mai," said Kobe.

"Indeed it is, the egg shao mai from earlier now coming out of the steamer…did we see what went into that?"

"Ah, no, I didn't," Morimoto said.

"Fukui-san!"

"Yeah?"

"In these egg shao mai the Wonder Chef has put pork that he steamed earlier in the battle, that he later stir-fried with tobanjan, or hot pepper paste, and ginger."

"Oh, pork went in there, okay," Hattori piped up. "It's not unusual, it's just…shrimp, I think, would've worked better, although considering what else Ohta said he prepared it with, I'm not all that surprised."

"Well, they look good, in any event," Fukui replied. "Some uni and ikura going down on top of that one, that one looks really good…you know, you guys should feel pretty lucky that you're getting to taste all these things…" He gestured to the Iron Chefs sitting next to him, who chuckled.

"Hey, at least you're not the ones who have to battle on a regular basis…" Morimoto joked.

"You're right about that one," Fukui shot back, "and now the Wonder Chef setting those down in the plating area, maybe those will be served as-is…"

"Hey, look, it's the egg and uni noodles on Chef Irving's side," Kobe called out, calling the commentators' attention to the other side.

Lloyd had just put his egg noodles into martini glasses, then called out to his assistants to grab some lobster meat from the quiche to which he had shifted his attention.

"Set that on top of those noodles, will ya?" he shouted. "And find a lemon or two and squeeze it over the top!"

"I think I picked up a call for some kind of citrus juice on Chef Irving's side, didn't quite catch what kind, but that'll go over top of that, and now look at this, his quiche going into the oven!"

"Wow, that looks amazing," Kobe muttered. He was quickly distracted by an emphatic "whoa!" from Fukui, who had taken note of the Wonder Chef's assistant's application of a blowtorch to bamboo shoot cross-sections. The camera quickly cut back to Chef Ellis, whose bamboo shoots were violently flaring up.

"Hey, hey, dial that down over there!" the Wonder Chef called to his assistant. "Don't want to burn the whole place down before we take it over!" And with that, he took charge of the blowtorch.

"'Let me take it,' Chef Ellis says, maybe he can keep better control over those flames, and now back to Chef Irving's side—"

"Oh, his rice from earlier," said Hattori, who called attention to the circular-shaped bamboo bowls that contained a mixture of rice and a thin layer of egg on top.

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"I'm told Chef Irving seasoned the rice to make it a bit similar to sushi rice before making a risotto out of it, which is what you see here."

"So a kind of sha-risotto?" Morimoto inquired jokingly, playing on the Japanese word for sushi rice.

"I guess you could say that, yes," Kobe replied. "I'm curious—usually you don't season rice for a risotto…"

"You would say something like that, Mr. Italian Cuisine Expert," Fukui said with a chuckle. "Meantime, back to the other side, Chef Ellis's oven is also going…"

"Oh, were these the bamboo shoots from earlier?" Kobe asked.

"Indeed they are, take a look at that…I wonder what went into those there—"

"Fukui-san!"  
"Yes Ohta?"

"The ingredients in these bamboo shoot, uh, 'bowls', for lack of a better term, are the egg/potato/blended rice mixture from earlier, bamboo shoots, broccoli, and crabmeat."

"Ah, just as I thought," Morimoto smirked.

"Oh, suuuuure you did!" Fukui shot back.

"TEN MINUTES TO GO."

"All right, ten minutes left in this bonus grand finale of the Aselia Cup Tournament, it's been an exciting one for sure—we've seen some rather unusual but inspiring dishes come from both sides of the battlefield, but this should prove to be an exciting tasting either way, and now we're back on Chef Irving's side…"

"This was his shark's fin soup mixture from earlier, I believe."

"That it is, and it's down into a bowl there with more treatment to be added here…yep, here it is…"

As if on cue, Lloyd arrived at the bowl and carefully ladled a thin layer of beaten egg white on top of the whole bowl.

"Looks like the last snow of winter on there, if you ask me," Fukui said.

"Oh, yeah, beautiful presentation he's got there."

"Indeed he does, and look here, Chef Ellis with those floating islands from earlier in the battle, those are sitting pretty atop those piecrusts—"

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"  
"I'm told he also prepared a raspberry sauce to go along with this dessert, which by the way has frozen custard underneath."

"All right, thanks Ohta, I'm guessing he'll just put the sauce right over the iceberg shape…"

"I'd…probably think the same thing myself," Hattori replied.

"FIVE MINUTES TO GO."

"Now five minutes left in this egg battle, and so far the chefs appear to be in total control of their dishes and the action in their kitchens, it looks like we have four dishes from Chef Irving but only three from Chef Ellis, is that correct?"

"I believe so," Morimoto replied.

"Would Chef Ellis have enough time to make a fourth? We're a little under five minutes left…"

"If he hurries, but I can't think of anything you could make in just five minutes…"

"Fukui-san!"

"Go!"

"Right when the five-minute mark was announced, Chef Ellis appeared to relax a bit, almost as if he's in complete control of himself, though he seemed to have a bit of an _evil_ grin on his face as it was announced. Kinda scared me, back to you."

"All right, thanks Ohta, that might explain why he's here to begin with…now, take a look at this—elaborate decorations going on for his bamboo shoots and blended egg dish here. What kind of flower is that, do you know?" Fukui asked.

"Looks like cherry blossoms to me, and yeah, that presentation looks fantastic."

"Bamboo shoots in the midst of a cherry blossom bloom—Chef Ellis, putting the squeeze on Chef Irving, showing us why the world knows him as 'The Wonder Chef', he claimed the World Regeneration group would be nowhere in their culinary abilities without him, and he's certainly shown the wide range of culinary talent he needed to teach them all they know today!"

"ONE MINUTE TO GO."

"All right, one minute left, the final sixty seconds ticking down, and now Chef Irving's lobster quiche is now out of the oven, and look at how fantastic that looks over there, I say that one turned out beautifully!"

"Oh, yeah, the spinach is cooked to perfection, and the lobster looks _so_ tender."

"And both sides appear to be putting the finishing touches on their sets of dishes as we're approaching the finish line…"

"THIRTY SECONDS TO GO."

"Challenger Ellis boldly storms into Kitchen Stadium to take on the newly-crowned Aselia Cup champion, Lloyd Irving, claiming he should be the Aselia champion himself, kidnapping Iron Chefs Chen and Sakai in the process, so there's a lot more at stake than just pride…"

"FIFTEEN SECONDS TO GO."

"Both sides are done with about fifteen seconds left in the battle, one has to wonder if they'll make celebratory eggnog with the leftover eggs…"

"TEN SECONDS TO GO."

"A slap of the hands with Lloyd Irving and his assistants, he must be exhausted after fighting two battles in a row…"

"FIVE SECONDS."

"Final seconds ticking down…"

"THREE."

"TWO."

"ONE."

"…and THAT'S IT!" Fukui roared as the gong crashed. "The cooking's done, the Egg Battle—and the Aselia Cup Tournament—is…OVAH!"

Chef Ellis haughtily slammed his towel back on the counter as he looked skyward. Lloyd, visibly exhausted from the battle, slumped onto an empty spot on the counter and reached for the bottle of water he left there.

He only was able to see the audience begin to rise from their seats as he passed out into his assistants' arms.

* * *

**Whew! Even I'm exhausted after writing that. Tasting and judgment for the final battle, next on **_**Iron Chef Symphonia**_**! Don't go anywhere!**


	17. Sixteen: The Real Last Supper

**The judging for the final battle of the Aselia Cup Tournament is sure to be a tense affair. Can Lloyd stave off the Wonder Chef and rescue Iron Chefs Sakai and Chen? Or will the Wonder Chef defeat Aselia's champion?**

**

* * *

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**Chapter 16: The Real Last Supper**

"Lloyd!"

"Lloyd, wake up!"

The red-clad swordsman did not stir.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

**==FAHRENHEIT 451== (FUKUI NARRATING)**

Wonder Chef Ellis is offering three dishes.

First, Egg and Pork Shao Mai. A delicate omelet is the skin for these shao mai which contain a delectable helping of stir-fried pork. Sea urchin and salmon roe add a salty taste to enhance the luxurious flavors.

"Golden Boats" is the name for Ellis's second creation. A gratin-like mixture fills the center of the bamboo bowl, made from potatoes and egg yolks. The crab meat and egg sauce creates another layer of complex flavors.

Last is Iles Flottantes. Beaten egg whites and sugar form the snow-capped mountain that hides the treasure, a piecrust with a frozen custard, underneath—complete with a tart finish in the raspberry sauce.

Champion Chef Irving offers four dishes.

First, Egg Yolk Noodles. Sea urchin roe and egg yolks blended together are enhanced by the aroma of citrus juice, providing the backbone of these noodles of a profound depth.

Second, Lobster Quiche, a creative use of the theme ingredient from his previous battle. Spinach, cilantro, and lobster are baked into a fluffy portion of egg, cradled by a delicate piecrust and a bed of melted mozzarella cheese.

Third is Sha-risotto. He used sushi rice to create this creamy risotto, a first for Kitchen Stadium Symphonia. It's a masterful balance between the creaminess of the eggs and the sourness of the seasoned rice.

Last is Snow-Capped Delight, indicative of the last snow of winter lingering on the ground. Underneath the fluffy egg white, tasters will find shark's fins and abalone, resulting in a luxurious warming tasted enhanced by caviar.

**==FIGHTING 17****TH****== (FUKUI NARRATING)**

A shocking turn of events unfolds as Chef Martin Ellis, the Wonder Chef, storms into Kitchen Stadium and kidnaps Iron Chefs Sakai and Chen to prove that he should've been invited to compete in the tournament.

Determined to prove his worth, he guns for the newly crowned Aselia Cup champion, Lloyd Irving—who will become Iron Chef should he win this battle.

For this battle, Chairman Kaga, visibly furious at the kidnapping of his Iron Chefs, unveils the theme, perhaps cracking under the pressure: it is eggs, and top-quality ones at that!

Confident, perhaps even brazen in his approach, Chef Ellis conjures a "wondrous" trio of dishes.

Champion Irving, under the gun, but focused throughout the battle, counters with a stunning quartet.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Take him to the holding room! Get him water and give him some air!" Mr. Matsuo called out frantically, ushering everyone off the kitchen floor.

"Is he going to be okay?" Sheena asked, rushing over—along with the rest of the party—from the stands.

"I think so. Hopefully he'll recover in time for his judging segment. Chris, Ron, in case Lloyd doesn't wake up in time, can you cover for him?"

Lloyd's assistants nodded. Ron spoke up.

"He was great at communicating his dishes to us. We've got it all covered."

"Well, don't make it sound like he _died_," Chris said, punching Ron. "He'll be fine, Ron. Mr. Matsuo, we can take it for him."

"OK," the frantic producer said. "His dishes get tasted second anyway, so just…I dunno, watch over him in the holding room, and if he wakes up before Chef Ellis finishes, call one of the PAs, please?"

Mr. Matsuo then ran off to the judges' table, cursing under his breath that his show was already three minutes heavy.

Colette looked back at Lloyd's assistants carrying the twin swordsman out of the arena, a worried expression on her face.

_Hang on, Lloyd._

**料理の鉄シンフォニア**

The Wonder Chef stood at the head of the judges' table, staring intently at the lineup of judges who would seal the fates of their culinary companions: the remaining five Iron Chefs.

_I should've kidnapped the old man, too…_ he thought as he watched the eldest Iron Chef, Michiba, take a sip of wine.

"Chef Ellis, if you please—your first course," Kaga beckoned as calmly as his elevated temper would allow. He was still furious. Furious that two of his Iron Chefs had been captured by a prominent name in Aselia, that this prominent name was brash enough to admit that he did it, that he was now tasting the food of this prominent name that was causing him so much anger.

Kaga was seething with rage to the point that he didn't even notice the shao mai arrive at the table—only with prodding from Iron Chef Morimoto, who sat to his immediate left, did he realize that he could eat.

_It's a shame I love shao mai,_ he thought. _He comes into _my _stadium, snatches _my _Iron Chefs, expends _my _resources from my pantry…he has to be taunting me._

"I would've enjoyed this more if you had left off the roe toppings," Morimoto declared. "The roe cancels out the texture of the egg skin you had worked so hard to create."

"Not to mention," chimed in Ishinabe, "that the saltiness from the roe and the spiciness of the pork doesn't work together. The one topped with ikura is more guilty of this, I think."

"I _will_ give you creativity points for using eggs as the skin, though," Nakamura chimed in. "I never would've thought of that in a million years."

"Would you have thought of it in thirty?" Michiba joked, sipping some more wine and prompting some laughter from the panel. "It's visually appealing, but it's too salty for me."

"You already drained three glasses of wine before the tasting, that's why it's so salty, Michiba-sama," Morimoto called to his teacher from the other end of the table. While they laughed that one off, the Wonder Chef retrieved his next course.

"We were all wondering where you were going with this one," Morimoto said when the "Golden Boats" arrived at the table.

"The presentation is so…nice…" Kobe said as he took a bite.

"I think it's missing something," Nakamura said in between bites. "It's a creative idea, but it's missing a little…punch."

"Yes, I agree," Kobe replied. "Something with more pungent flavor, or a more pungent aroma would've been nice. It's a little bland as-is."

"You've got a nice combination of textures in this," Michiba said, "but I agree with everyone else. I don't think you did enough to bring the egg to the center of the dish."

"You can't argue that he's got great presentation with this one, though," Ishinabe countered. "He had a certain…what's the word, _flair_ about him when he was making this. So that translated well on the plate."

Michiba shrugged as he stole another sip of wine while the Wonder Chef stole away to retrieve his dessert. The eldest Iron Chef beckoned for yet another glass.

"You don't stop, do you?" Ishinabe admonished his colleague with a chuckle.

"Eh, well, when you've been _here_ all day, you kinda need a pick-me-up," Michiba shot back, his words slowly beginning to slur. He laughed a bit longer than he probably intended to as he reached for his glass—which was now full—and took another sip.

"Please be aware of the frozen custard underneath the egg whites," the Wonder Chef advised as the Iron Chefs sampled his dessert.

"It's pretty good, there's no doubt about that," Morimoto began. "But does anyone else here feel like this is egg overload?" There's nothing else that subdues the egg flavor or the sweetness."

"I'm going to have to agree there," Nakamura replied. "Again, you wow us with your presentation, but you've perhaps overcompensated on the egg flavor here."

"It's also too sweet for my liking," Michiba remarked.

"Normally I'd call him out for drinking too much," Ishinabe added, "but I have to agree. It's way too sweet, even with the raspberry sauce."

"I will say this much, though, if anyone gives him less than full marks for presentation, I might have him kidnap me too," Michiba joked. Even the Wonder Chef laughed at that one.

"I want you back in the holding room and waiting there until we're finished. No funny business, you hear me?" Mr. Matsuo called out to the Wonder Chef after the cameras stopped.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"What…what happened? Where am I?" Lloyd asked his assistants.

"You're in the holding room," his assistant Ron replied. "You finished the battle and fainted on us."

"Oh, man," Lloyd groaned as he sat up and rubbed his head. "What'd I miss?"

"The Wonder Chef is having his dishes tasted now," Chris said. "We were going to go on and cover for you, but we'll let you take care of it if you're feeling up to it."

"Lloyd!" a voice called. The twin swordsman looked to the doorway and saw possibly the only person he wanted to see, the blonde Chosen with whom he shared his restaurant.

"Colette…? What are you doing here?"

"Checking up on you," the former Chosen replied sweetly. "Feeling better?" she said, offering Lloyd a glass of water.

"Much better now that I've slept it off a bit," he said. "When am I supposed to go on?"

"I just checked with Mr. Matsuo," Colette said. "The Wonder Chef just finished, but he told me to let him know whenever you're ready."

"Yeah, yeah, go ahead, tell him I'm fine, I'll be ready in two minutes," Lloyd said, shooing her away and preparing to go back to the judges' table for the last time.

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

Lloyd shook hands with Chairman Kaga as he stood at the head of the table. Bowing to the Iron Chefs who were judging, Kaga turned to him and chuckled.

"Quite a fright you had back there, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, tell me about it," the twin swordsman said, scratching his head. "I think I remember all my dishes, and I think I remember what went into them…"

"Well, let's get started then," Michiba called out, taking a swig from his newly-filled glass.

"Let's get started, indeed," Lloyd said, clapping his hands and fetching his first course. "These are egg noodles with sea urchin roe and ukiko flour mixed in. I sprinkled some lemon juice over the top of the whole thing, and sat some lobster right on top."

"Wow," Kobe said as he slurped up some more noodles, "good stuff."

"It's a really creative use of the theme ingredient," said Nakamura. "I think the combination of uni and egg yolks works perfectly with the lobster you've added on top, and the lemon juice is a nice accent."

"The texture of the noodles is just perfect, too," Morimoto added. "They're not too soft, and they have a nice firmness to them."

With the rest of the panel speechless, Lloyd retrieved his quiche.

"I know I put lobster and egg in this, but I can't remember what else…"

"Ehehe! Of course not, you passed out for a good thirty minutes!" Michiba said, now somewhat in a drunken stupor.

Ishinabe glared at Michiba, who wasn't paying him any mind and already dug into Lloyd's quiche. "The man is very clearly drunk," he told Lloyd. "Please don't pay him any mind. I hope his faculties will be in order when it comes time to score, however…but to answer your question, Mr. Irving, I believe you have spinach and cilantro in here…"

"Ah!" Lloyd perked up in realization. "Thank you, Ishinabe-san, that's right, and there's a bed of mozzarella cheese below the egg mixture."

"I think it's a good dish in concept," Kobe said between bites. "I don't think you needed the cheese—the strong taste takes over from the egg, and it doesn't really mesh with the lobster too well."

"You think it was the cheese?" Morimoto challenged. "I thought it was the cilantro, myself. The spinach was a good add as was the cheese, but the cilantro is too strong."

"I'm not so sure I would've gone with lobster," Ishinabe said, putting down his fork. "Shrimp or langoustine would have been a better choice. The lobster is too chewy to go along with the fluffy egg, so the conflicting textures bother me."

_Boy, they're not holding back at all this time, are they?_ Lloyd thought as he went off to fetch his next course. _Then again, they ARE the Iron Chefs, so one would think that they're the toughest judges of them all…well, I hope they'll like the risotto._

"I used sushi rice for the risotto," he explained as the dish arrived at the judges' table.

"I never would've imagined you would've even attempted something like this in the one-hour time frame," Nakamura said. "A bold move, for sure."

"And…you know what? This tastes pretty good!" Michiba said. "I like your approach, kid. Sorta reminds me of that other kid with the silver hair…what was his name again?"

"You mean Genis?" Lloyd asked. "I'm pretty sure he never—"

"Genis, _that's _it!" Michiba interrupted. "Yeah, he had some bold approaches too."

"Michiba-san's only worked up over this dish because he's had maybe ninety glasses of wine already," Morimoto added sarcastically. "Having said that, I haven't had any wine at all and I think this is really good. It's a creative approach here, and you certainly had the technique to do it well."

"I don't think the egg comes through well enough here," Kobe said. "I would've liked to see it infused better in the dish, instead of just a layer on the top."

"I'm not sure the sourness in the seasoning plays through quite as well as you had hoped," Ishinabe added.

Lloyd furrowed his brow, somewhat confused as he dashed off to retrieve his final course, which he ladled from the larger bowl into smaller ones.

"I thought I'd give everyone a break from the egg taste you've probably accumulated by now, so I decided to make it a team player here instead of the star."

"If this were a shark's fin battle," Ishinabe said, "I think this would've been a knockout. But it's an egg battle, and while I do like your presentation, I wished you had incorporated the egg better in the soup."

"I disagree, I like the subtlety of the egg in this dish," Morimoto said. "It's a refreshing, soothing way to end his course."

"It's a nice break, I think," Kobe said. "Everything—textures, flavors, balance—it works."

"You know, I've had maybe about eight glasses of wine," Michiba said to laughter from the panel, "and I gotta say, I'm very impressed by both sides. It's definitely going to be a tough call today…no ties allowed?"

"No ties, correct," Kaga confirmed.

"Oh, man," Michiba groaned.

Lloyd wasn't sure whether to laugh or be even more nervous as he walked back to the holding room to await the results.

* * *

**Okay, Michiba-san, glass down, pen in hand, and hand down the verdict. Next!**


	18. Seventeen: The End of a Thought

**Well folks…this is it. The tournament is over, the dishes have been tasted, and now, only one question remains…whose cuisine reigns supreme? Find out…right now!**

**

* * *

Chapter 17: The End of a Thought**

A nervous buzz hung over Kitchen Stadium as the audience awaited Kaga's entrance. They knew all too well what was at stake in this battle, and they wanted to see their culinary heroes returned to their rightful positions.

The nervous buzz turned into raucous cheers and applause as the Chairman entered, tailed by his panel of Iron Chefs, into the Stadium, and took his usual place behind the ingredient stand. Everyone was anxious to hear the results of the battle and the Wonder Chef's bet.

"I never would have imagined that something of this magnitude could have befallen my Kitchen Stadium," Kaga began. "But now…reality has set in."

_It's so quiet in here, you can hear a pin drop,_ Lloyd thought.

_Just get on with it and declare me the winner already, Kaga, you'll make everyone's lives easier,_ the Wonder Chef thought.

"The world is counting on Aselia's hero, Lloyd Irving, to save it again from someone we all once trusted," Kaga said sternly, staring at the Wonder Chef the whole time.

"I do not have the book with me this time," he added, holding up his hands. "I will come with it straight, and announce the winner."

He looked to the World Regeneration group that was now standing at their seats. He nodded, paused, and then exhaled deeply.

"Now…the verdict."

**==TIME LAPSE==**

"What a tense turn of events here in Kitchen Stadium, and what a grand finale to the Aselia Cup Tournament—the battle to decide the best in Aselia," Fukui narrated. "The Wonder Chef, Martin Ellis, once thought to be the great teacher to the World Regeneration Party now has turned against them. It's up to Aselia's champion to save the Stadium—and Iron Chefs Sakai and Chen…the fate of the world hangs on Kaga's words! Who takes it? Whose cuisine reigns supreme?"

The Chairman took a deep breath before he made a move to gesture to one side of Kitchen Stadium, then quickly threw his arm in the other direction and bellowed the winner's name.

"_LLOYD IRVING!_"

_What the—!_

**==FAHRENHEIT 451===**

"HE DID IT!" Fukui shrieked as the Stadium erupted in the loudest cheers anyone had ever heard. "Lloyd Irving has done it again! He's gone three in a row and has won this crucial battle! Unbelievable—the crowd has taken leave of their senses, and no question about it, he's the best chef in Aselia!"

Despite being overcome with emotion, Lloyd somehow made his way over to the Wonder Chef to shake his hand. But the Wonder Chef would have nothing of it, as he simply remained where he was and sulked with his arms crossed.

"And as the Wonder Chef refuses to shake hands with the champion, let's take a look at the scores," Fukui said, his jab at the Wonder Chef eliciting a few laughs from the audience, "Morimoto, 18-16 Irving. Kobe, 19-17 Irving. Nakamura, 19-17 Irving. Ishinabe, 17-16 Irving. Michiba, 16-14 Irving—unbelievable! Not just a win, but a _sweep_! He's saved the world once before, and he managed to do it again, here in Kitchen Stadium!"

Perhaps giving up on the Wonder Chef responding, Lloyd sprinted up to the ingredient stand at the Chairman's beckoning to receive a medal from a slightly more sober Iron Chef Michiba.

"Congratulations!" he said, still a little drunk. Lloyd patted him on the back and shook hands with the rest of the Iron Chefs. The applause showed no signs of dying down anytime soon as the Chairman made his way over to the champion.

"I am forever in your debt, Mr. Irving," he told the twin swordsman. "Congratulations, enjoy the moment, and then I'd like to have a word with you after we finish taping."

"Thank you, Chairman," Lloyd said before he took off for the center of Kitchen Stadium and waved to the crowd. He didn't get to enjoy the moment for long, though, as a familiar blonde Chosen tackled him to the ground and squealed.

"You did it!" she cried as they hit the floor. "I'm so happy for you, Lloyd!"

The rest of the party came up behind Colette, forming a circle around the newly crowned best chef in Aselia. Everyone was offering the twin swordsman their congratulations as the applause continued to sound throughout the Stadium. Lloyd eventually had to push them all off before Colette squeezed him to death. He wasn't able to escape for long, as the entire group picked up him (to his surprise) and began tossing him in the air.

"Hmph," the Wonder Chef grunted. "I guess I'll have to hold up my end of the deal, won't I?"

Kaga held up his finger and silenced the crowd.

"I do believe," he began, "that Chef Ellis has some explaining to do, correct?"

"I suppose so…"

The Wonder Chef snapped his fingers, and a bang followed by some clanging could be heard from underneath the portraits of the Iron Chefs.

"They were my bargaining chips," he said. "Business at my restaurant was declining ever since the likes of Genis arrived in the culinary scene. And then when this tournament came about, I thought for sure I would've received an invitation. But since I didn't, I had to do something about it…I thought maybe if I got two of the Iron Chefs to work under me, then maybe I could've saved my restaurant," the Wonder Chef said, faltering a bit.

"But now that I've been completely and utterly humiliated in this battle, I suppose I have no other choice than to let you, Kaga, call upon your men once again…" he said once more through gritted teeth.

"This won't be the last you'll hear from me, Kaga. Just you wait."

He took up his giant fork, raised it to the heavens, and without another word, disappeared in a cloud of smoke. An eerie silence filled the Stadium before Kaga made to speak.

"In light of recent events, I shall now call upon the two men who shall be reinstated to their rightful positions," he said, a grin beginning to crack his face. "Kitchen Stadium has weathered many battles, but these two have defended the honor of the Iron Chefs since Day One of the Stadium. I am very pleased to welcome them back home.

"Yomigaeru-ai…IRON CHEF!"

**==SHOW ME YOUR FIRETRUCK==**

Chen and Sakai's portraits glowed, smoke billowed from the dais, and before long the two Iron Chefs were lifted into view to a smattering of cheers and applause. They were soon quieted once again by the Chairman, who wasn't finished.

"I also have one bit of unfinished business," he said. "If Chef Irving would join us here, please?"

The twin swordsman sprinted up to the stand and stood next to Kaga, somewhat confused at all the events.

"In my excitement following these recent happenings, it seems I have forgotten another important issue," he said. "I made two promises—one, that one dish from this entire tournament would be named the Aselia Dish. And two," he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out an embroidered patch, "that it is my pleasure to introduce all of you to _**Iron Chef**_ Lloyd Irving!"

The crowd exploded at Kaga's announcement, while the twin swordsman could only direct a dumbstruck stare at the Chairman (who was now affixing the patch onto his sleeve with some difficulty).

Genis could only shake his head in disbelief. While he never doubted that Lloyd was at least a competent cook, he could never bring himself to make "Iron Chef" and "Lloyd Irving" sound good together in the same sentence.

"You think he can beat one of them?" he asked Presea, pointing in Morimoto's direction.

"Them? I don't know," Presea replied. "But you?" she said coyly, which was strange to see from the pink-haired woodcutter to begin with.

"I don't see it happening."

Genis went bug-eyed.

_Did she just…do what I think she did?_ he thought, slightly dazed.

"Before I can declare this tournament closed," Kaga interrupted the young mage's thoughts, "we have one more order of business to discuss, and that of course is the Aselia Dish, the national dish."

Colette, Presea, and Regal rejoined Lloyd at the ingredient stand next to Kaga in eager anticipation.

"I decided to make any dish from any of these battles a candidate for the Aselia Dish," Kaga said. "In all battles here in Kitchen Stadium, our panel members judge the meal as a whole, not by individual dishes. I believe that the Aselia Dish should transcend all of this, to appeal to all regardless of whether its creator won the battle or not. In addition, I looked for a dish that artfully spoke to the message of peace through cuisine."

Regal raised an eyebrow.

"I have arranged for a representation of the dish made, and it was finished before the verdict was announced. It was created, of course, by one of these four," he said, gesturing to the four warriors-turned-chefs standing next to him. "When I first tasted this dish, I truly felt that it spoke to the rebirth of a town, the rebirth of a new world-view. And as the judges themselves could not make up their mind as to what to name the Aselia Dish, allow me this one moment of selfishness and let me cast the deciding vote myself."

The four chefs looked stunned, knowing all too well Kaga never judged anything.

"OK, let's announce it," he said. "The Aselia Dish…is this!"

Kaga ripped the tablecloth off the ingredient stand, releasing a cloud of smoke. A framed picture of the dish, accompanied by a model of it, ascended into view, stunning a certain pink-haired woodcutter.

"The Aselia Dish…is Ozette-style Eel Stew!"

A recording of Fukui's description of Presea's dish could be heard over all the applause as Presea received a medal from Kaga. She could barely contain herself, and for the first time in Presea's recent memory, she could feel a tear well up in her eyes.

_Ozette…we have won._

As Kaga chomped down on one final yellow pepper to close out the tournament, Lloyd looked to the darkened sky. Night had fallen over the stadium, and the new Aselia Cup champion took a scan of the second world he had a hand in saving. He looked over to Presea and his other competitors and smiled.

_Iselia…no, the world…has won._

_

* * *

_**And with that, this story is finally complete! It's been nearly a year since I started it, but I'm glad I stuck with it until the very end.**

**Special thanks to Cwister, Moonlight M3lody, and all my other reviewers for staying with me through this story. Couldn't have done it without you.**

**Epilogue (and story track list) to come. As I typed this last author's note, I just got an idea for an epilogue, so stay tuned for that.**

**Until next time, then…**


	19. Epilogue: An Announcement

**Epilogue: An Announcement**

**TWO MONTHS LATER**

"_Anna_: by Colette Brunel and Iron Chef Lloyd Irving…he _would _put something like that there," Genis said, shaking his head as he put down the menu. "But hey, business is business, and I guess it's working…"

"Yeah, you got that right," Sheena said, looking out the door of the World Regeneration Party's private room to the packed restaurant. "Well, look who decided to show," she half-groaned as the former Tethe'alla Chosen sauntered up to said room.

"A bit late there, aren't you, Zelos?" Genis said.

"Shut up, brat," he shot back. "You might be the Iron Chef, but at least I'm not so short that they don't have to jack the elevator up five feet just so you can see over the top of the platform."

"At least I can actually cook!" Genis retorted.

"Yeah, well, at least I can actually tell a girl I like her!"

"Enough already!" Raine yelled. "Listen to yourselves, you sound like quarreling schoolchildren."

"Well, he's old enough to be one," Zelos said as he made his way to his seat.

"And you're too old to be acting like one," Genis mumbled.

"Genis, what did you say was good on the menu again?" Regal said, hoping to get their minds off the argument.

"Oh, right, the menu," the young Iron Chef realized. "Well, there's the mango-roasted duck he made on _Iron Chef_, and then there's the Drunken Lobsters…"

**~料理の鉄シンフォニア~**

"Chef Irving!"

"Yes!"

"There's someone in the World Regeneration Party's private room that I think you and Chef Brunel should probably go see. Says he had a message for you. Oh, and another thing, why don't you and Chef Brunel go make yourself something too and go eat with your friends after we're done with their orders. Ron and I will hold down the fort for you."

"Thanks Chris, I'll be there right away, and thanks for the cover. Colette!"

Lloyd set down the hot pan he just finished working with and wiped his brow. He never remembered the restaurant being this busy, though his big win on _Iron Chef_ should have been a hint as to why business was suddenly booming.

"Hey Lloyd!"

Soon the former Sylvaranti Chosen made her way over to his side, and the two made their way through the kitchen and out into the main dining room, dodging waiters and customers as they walked calmly to the private room they had set up. Lloyd paused in front of a couple of pictures in the hallway: one of the entire group gathered around the Giant Kharlan Tree, the other of him (in his new Iron Chef garb) and Colette with Chairman Kaga in the outdoor Kitchen Stadium. Underneath both of them was a plaque with an inscription in both Japanese and English.

おいしい料理を通して平和

Oishii ryori wotoshite heiwa

Peace Through Good Food

_Thank you, Chairman_, he thought as he pulled the door open. He was happy to see everyone from his group and all of their happy faces (in part because he said he was paying). He chuckled at bit at Genis wearing his Iron Chef uniform—but then, he thought, that's probably what got them into this room in the first place.

What he wasn't expecting, however, was a certain auburn-haired seraph leaning over his shoulder and getting his attention.

"Dad? What on Aselia—"

"Yes, I'm here, Lloyd. Don't be alarmed, I came here to try your food as well. And Chairman Kaga also commissioned me to deliver this," Kratos said, pulling out a scroll.

"I'll look at this later," Lloyd said, stuffing it into his pocket. "Your orders went in," he told the group. "They'll be ready in a few minutes. Dad, did you order yet?"

"No," Kratos simply said, "but I think I'll have the lemon-glazed tenderloin, unless someone already ordered it."

"Nope, and I'm surprised," Lloyd responded. "Although nowadays everyone wants to try the dishes Colette and I made on _Iron Chef_. I mean, look, Presea and Genis are sharing the Mango Duck."

Genis turned his face towards the wall as his friend called him out.

"Some of them aren't big enough for full meals, I don't think, but as long as Colette and I are making money we could care less!"

The entire room laughed as he left for the kitchen. Colette stayed behind to entertain them as Lloyd went to work on his friends' dishes.

_Now about that note,_ he thought, heading for the back and pulling out the scroll. He went out the door and, safely in the restaurant's "backyard," rolled open the Chairman's letter.

_Dear Iron Chef Irving,_

_ We have a crisis on our hands in Kitchen Stadium. I have just received a rather angry letter from Chef Ellis, who has claimed that your victory against him in the Aselia Cup Tournament was an unfair judgment. He has challenged you to a revenge match to be held in just two months._

_ He claims he wants his honor back—I fear he will attempt another stunt like the one he executed during the tournament. I humbly ask you to step up to this challenge and defend the honor of Kitchen Stadium. Good luck._

_Sincerely,_

_Takeshi Kaga_

**~終わり~**

**

* * *

**

**IRON CHEF SYMPHONIA TRACKLIST**

**(In case you want to listen to the music I used in this story. YouTube searches will usually turn them up—if you have any problems encountering any tracks, please feel free to PM me and I'll point you in the right direction. Please note the different timecodes for some of the tracks)**

**==IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE==**

Charging Fort Wagner (Ch. 3)—James Horner, _Glory_ soundtrack

Last Battle: Decision (Ch. 3)—Sakuraba/Tamura, TOS OST

Show Me Your Firetruck (0:00-0:09) (Ch. 3, 11)—Hans Zimmer, _Backdraft _soundtrack

English GCN Version Intro (Ch. 3)—Sakuraba/Tamura (?), TOS OST

Show Me Your Firetruck (0:22-1:37) (Ch. 3, 17)—Zimmer, _Backdraft_

Soshite Boku Ni Dekiru Koto (Heroic) (Ch. 3, 11)—day after tomorrow, TOS OST

Burn It All (0:02-0:41) (Ch. 3, 6)—Zimmer, _Backdraft_

Walking on Tethe'alla (Ch. 3)—Sakuraba/Tamura, TOS OST

You Go, We Go (0:34-0:58) (Ch. 4, 7, 12, 15)—Zimmer, _Backdraft_

Fahrenheit 451 (0:28-2:02) (Ch. 5, 8, 13, 15)—Zimmer, _Backdraft_

Fighting 17th (0:33-1:16) (Ch. 5, 8, 13, 15)—Zimmer, _Backdraft_

Time Lapse (0:29-0:58) (Ch. 6, 9, 14, 17)—Michael Nyman, _A Zed and Two Noughts _soundtrack

Fahrenheit 451 (2:09-2:58) (Ch. 6, 9, 14, 17)—Zimmer, _Backdraft_

Confrontation (Ch. 6)—Junichi Nakatsuru, Soul Calibur II OST

Eternal Oath (Ch. 11)—Sakuraba/Tamura, TOS OST

Fighting the Spirit (Ch. 11)—Sakuraba/Tamura, TOS OST

Overture: Nobunaga's Ambition (Ch. 12)—Yoko Kanno, Nobunaga's Ambition—20th Anniversary Sound History

Final Shore (Ch. 14)—Yoko Kanno, Turn A Gundam OST


End file.
